


Dragon Ball: Governed

by Jakei



Category: Dragon Ball
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-12
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2020-05-02 05:02:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 197,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19192333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jakei/pseuds/Jakei
Summary: Going against his initial intuition, Freeza makes the choice in not destroying Planet Vegeta. Changes come and the lives of those we are most familiar with turn out completely different. Focus on the Saiyans we have grown up with (as well as new faces), is of utmost importance regarding this fanfiction. Come and see how those such as Kakarot, Gine, and many others are developed.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer:
> 
> Everything Dragon Ball related doesn't own to me-at all. This is created by Akira Toriyama, who works alongside those of Toei and Shueisha. The characters in Dragon Ball also are not mine, apart from the original characters that will inevitably be made in this fanfiction story. Dragon Ball is my most beloved franchise in the entire world and it's helped me become better in the thing I love doing: writing.
> 
> I've had many ideas of writing with Dragon Ball and this very story is the one thing I could never get on my mind. For ages, I've been wanting to do this but the Broly movie was something that needed to be released before I could even touch this story. Now that it's out of the way, I feel liberated to go about this story as I've always wanted.
> 
> Dragon Ball: Governed
> 
> For those who have read the summary, you're already well aware of what the big change is: Freeza doesn't destroy Planet Vegeta. Because of this, events unfold very differently. As I do my best to keep characters in character all the while adding more substance to them, be on the lookout for interesting developents. Differences in these characters will be absolute but it's because I plan on thoroughly fleshing them out, despite the small cast we're bound to deal with given the circumstances.
> 
> So tag along as this story unfolds. Any type of feedback, whether they be reviews, questions, criticisms or anything...be sure to let me know. Don't shy in messaging me either as I love interacting with people here. Just be sure to be respectful all throughout.
> 
> I hope you can enjoy this story.

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 1**

**"Different Beginnings"**

Super Saiyan.

Super Saiyan God.

For anyone to hear such without knowing the history behind them, fear or worry wouldn't be the first things felt. Instead, curiosity and confusion would take the place of fear and worry.

Luckily for Freeza he knew the reputation connected to the Saiyan name but the Super before it alongside the brief history, who many believe to be myth, did worry him.

If these names were to send momentary chills up Freeza's spine, then these titles have serious meaning behind them. For to be able to instill even just a bit of worry into the heart of a universal emperor is in itself commendable enough.

Though while worried, Freeza kept a very cool and calm demeanor as he discussed these matters with his two most trusted advisors: Kikono and BeriBlu. "Super Saiyan. Super Saiyan God…" Freeza had been repeating these titles for the past half minute, just letting it all digest.

Not even for just a couple of years of ruling over the Saiyans after being coronated by his father, Freeza began to hear rumors of this warrior race. These rumors consisted of the Super Saiyan, which was something spoken of as the most unstoppable and invincible warrior. And if the Super Saiyan legend itself is to be so untouchable, then how strong could this legendary Super Saiyan God possibly be?

"It is quite synonymous to putting Kings and Gods in the same sentence," BeriBlu commented. "Both represent great prowess but we know precisely what is superior to the other."

Opening his eyes, Freeza was facing his reflection through the squeaky clean window that permitted him to observe the beautiful stars and planets as he travelled the cosmos. For the time being while Freeza didn't have any urgent matters, the ship was ordered to be under autopilot until Freeza figured out what it was he wanted to do.

_**Kill these pests?** _

_Or…_

_**Let them be?** _

Freeza's silence wasn't something that Kikono was always comfortable with, though he remained tolerant to his master's personality over the years. It was more trouble putting up with Freeza than Cold but he knew to keep his mouth shut. And because of spending so much time around Freeza, Kikono had managed to get a basic idea of how his thought process was.

"Surely you're not thinking what I think you're thinking…"

"And what could he possibly be thinking?" Beriblu prodded.

"Maybe of ridding the universe of these Saiyan pests…" Freeza spoke up. "Individually, these Saiyans are no danger to me. Even as an entire race, they wouldn't do all too well, either. Despite how innately insignificant these dogs are, if there is even a shred of truth to these legends, then that can spell possible embarrassment for me in the future, would it not?" If there was anything Freeza feared, it was being overpowered and humiliated by anyone he deemed lesser. He didn't love his title as Lord for the business aspect or for the mere sake of professionalism, but because he loved the power that came with being Lord Freeza. To have that possibly taken away from him would be figuratively stripping him naked.

And by a Saiyan?

Preposterous!

"Even while under the assumption that these legends have some supposed truth to them, I doubt it'd still be a threat to you," Beriblu said. Many would speak out like this toward Freeza in the form of bootlicking but Freeza knew Beriblu all to well. She was speaking her own honest truth. "The Saiyans have great potential as warriors sure enough, but yours far exceeds that of any Saiyan's potential. The strongest of them couldn't touch you on a good day and to believe that some made up Super Saiyan could would be ridiculous, wouldn't you agree?"

"I most certainly agree on that point," Kikono told Beriblu. "Lord Freeza's never trained a day in his life and he's needed to revert into three suppressed forms just to stay at a comfortable power. Those Saiyans can spend hundreds of years of training on that same Planet and would be lucky to even remotely touch Lord Freeza's level. And sire…" Kikono turned to Freeza. "Even if you were to train...which I know you won't...you'd be untouchable."

Freeza couldn't help but agree with their viewpoints. They were anything but rebuttable, though it didn't mean that Freeza didn't have his concerns. "I can respectfully give you both the benefit of the doubt. You make good points in defense of the Saiyans. And though I know you both believe it's of our best interest within the business to keep the Saiyans alive, I won't use that argument against you."

Beriblu and Kikono both took a step forward with their heads stretched out. They wondered...just what would Freeza come to say next?

"These savages can stay alive." His intuition told him to go through with his first mind: to kill the Saiyans. However, on second thought, Freeza felt that he was also being far too cautious. Personally, he believed all occasions to be better safe than sorry but he knew that no matter what, these Saiyans could never pull up to be a threat for him.

"So we don't have to worry about half our men being killed thanks to you sparing them, correct?" Beriblu asked, solely for absolute confirmation.

"No, you need not worry about that," Freeza answered.

This had a sigh of relief come over Beriblu and Kikono. Neither couldn't give a damn about the Saiyans at all but at the same time they were a necessity because they made up a great portion of the Freeza Force. Not only that but they were the most efficient as well. To destroy them would be to slow down business drastically and this was something that Kikono and Beriblu wanted to avoid.

But if Freeza were to decide to kill them off, then it'd be final.

* * *

So long as the Saiyans remain a thing in the universe, then it comes at the expense of many, many more lives. Working under Freeza, an average Saiyan soldier's duty was to go out to assigned worlds and evacuate all life of the planet so that it could be sold to the highest bidder.

Such an organization that had been made by Cold was the best fraudulent way of getting over people.

For instance, if a planet is being looked onto to be invested in, then either Freeza or Cold will be approached. If Cold gets approached, then he passes the news onto Freeza, who will then handle business. Depending on the type of planet needed cleaning, either Freeza's elite or low-class men will be assigned to wipe it up so that the people looking to buy it could settle in. Freeza is the one who makes the profit and can establish partnerships, meaning he can be getting other investments subsequent to those people getting adjusted to their new living circumstance. However, if someone more affluent and beneficial were to come to Freeza asking to have that same planet wiped clean, then Freeza wouldn't second guess stabbing those 'supposed' partnering investors in the back so that he could make even bigger profit.

Doing this throughout the universe came with its ups and downs, but for Freeza and his father, it mostly consisted of the former. Business was always booming and there was truly no other way of life for them that they could enjoy and use to justify their innate maliciousness.

Saiyans loved to be apart of this business, as it included the thing they loved most:

_**Combat.** _

"Looks like you've been waiting to head back home, eh?"

Weeks have gone by and the Saiyan Bardock has been off his homeworld for some time now. He and many other peers were very accustomed to being on foreign worlds more than their own planet but there were times in which Bardock did get a little homesick. This feeling hadn't been very prevalent in his younger years.

Things have changed, though.

The serious looking Saiyan crossed his arms while he sat directly alongside his comrade and settled in his seat. Very rare did anyone catch Bardock with a smile on his face whenever he wasn't fighting.

"Our rations are low and eating on different people upsets my stomach," Bardock replied tersely.

"Heh." Leek let out a sigh as he rested his head onto his hand, elbow pressed down on his armchair. "Some REAL food would do me some justice right about now. Gine wouldn't mind cutting me off a piece, would she?"

"Nothing comes free, Leek," Bardock told him.

Leek couldn't help but smirk. When it came to Bardock, there were no guarantees with him. The guy was known to be direct and truthful, no matter what. Some other peers would naturally take offense to how Bardock responded, though if it wasn't for the respect he's already managed to garner, he'd probably be six feet under or ashes by now. "A man can try."

Bardock didn't say anything.

Those who preferred silence are the ones that are comfortable with being in their own head. Many Saiyans weren't like that.

Leek wasn't like that.

Not wanting to just ride on a near soundless engine for the next few hours before sleeping, Leke decided to keep up with conversation.

"What are you going to be up to when back home?"

"I'm going to rest. Probably catch up to Toma and the others."

"Right...no need to tell me. They went by squeaky clean on their mission, didn't they?"

"Planet Meat wasn't cracked up to be what people kept raving on about.."

Leek's eye circled over to Bardock, giving the Saiyan a look of confusion. "I was told Planet Meat was one of the top missions! That's why Toma tried to get us to tag along, but you were so intent on not going with them."

"So? You could have just went off with them," Bardock replied.

"You really think I was just going to leave you to go on a different planet by yourself?"

"Most others would."

"Sure, but not me…"

"This little notion everyone had of Planet Meat being so special was just people exaggerating. From what I've learned, the worlds that are emphasized on won't show as much promise as you'd expect."

"That's why you decided to head differently, huh? You figured you'd get a challenge there because of how much people underestimated it." Rubbing over the scar that started from his hairline till the center of his forehead as a way of thinking, Leek came to believe that he managed to finally figured it out. "No wonder. That mission was a little rough. I don't think I would have been able to make it if not for you."

"No. I figured that with you, me, and the others, then the mission would be too easy. There's no fun in fighting if you don't have at least some challenge. Not only that, but if you look at the business side of things, having two readied planets for sale instead of one makes for a total profit of all our behalf."

And then it was here that Leke came to realize that Bardock was really smarter than he's always let on. It took him all of five minutes just to wrap his head around the entire thing, mostly trying to understand Bardock. Leke, for the life of him, just couldn't see himself doing things as Bardock would.

Bardock knew he had to enjoy these five minutes of peace because Leek was just bound to bring up another topic.

"So, how are the boys?"

Bardock let out a low, aggravated grumble that went unnoticed.

* * *

The Saiyans that were seen unfit as warriors were the ones that remained on Planet Vegeta to work in other fields. Gine herself was at one time apart of Bardock's team but her incompetence had her come face to face with death more than once. Luckily enough for her, she had a Saiyan companion with enough compassion to save her on a handful of cases.

They now had a child together.

So figuring that it was best for her to stay and work in the meat distribution on Planet Vegeta, that's precisely what Gine did. After doing so for some years now, it was a very much easy task for the woman. Chopping and cooking food was done fairly quickly and business was always speedily done. Not only did she get to do a job that didn't affect her much at all, but she got to stay at home, too.

Unlike most Saiyan mothers, Gine was one who decided that she were going to have her children close to her at young ages. Her second child, Kakarot, was right in the back room of not only her home but also work place. Saiyan children remained in incubators for the first few years of their life until the proper time for release came. When Raditz was growing, Gine kept him close, so she was doing the same with her second son.

From being in there for approximately three years, it was just about time for Kakarot to be taken out.

But Gine wanted to prolong Kakarot's stay there for as much time as possible. Over the past few months now, her son's potential power has remained stagnant and while it's normal around this time, Kakarot hasn't been showing much promise at all. Knowing how things were ran at home, Kakarot was bound to become an infiltration baby.

She understood it but she didn't like it, for the system didn't make sense to her. They knew that a child's chances of survival were very small because of the unwanted Galactic Patrol. They sent men out to kill young Saiyan children that were being sent out just about every other week. And who's to guarantee that the frontier planet a lower-class Saiyan child is being sent to only has easy killable weaklings or that it doesn't have any possible dangerous outliers? All of these things Gine considered. She hoped that Kakarot would have enough potential like Raditz to grow up on Planet Vegeta as a promising combatant.

Such wasn't turning out to be the case, it seemed.

" **Gine."**

The sudden sound of her name being said alerted the woman. Its voice wasn't recognizable at all.

Turning around, Gine came to face a young Saiyan female. The armor she wore had been coated by her slick white cloak. All Gine needed to see was the cloak to deduct exactly why this person was here.

The clipboard she held tightly against her chest was the real dead give away.

Two steps forward and she was inside Gine's rock structured home. Walking all confident with a condescending attitude just with her body language made Gine not take much liking to the woman, albeit due to her own role, she had to respect her.

"That's me," Gine answered.

Looking at the paper that was clamped onto the clipboard, she had her mouth move silently, making it obvious that she was going over a list of names. "Does the young Saiyan...Kakarot...happen to be here by any chance?" Usually, Saiyan youngsters were kept in a room surrounded by other Saiyans in incubators, close to the King so that he could come in and check up on any updates regarding the next generation of Saiyans. Since Kakarot wasn't found to be in that room, it was most logically concluded that the boy's only other current place of residence could be with either parent.

Not seeing any reason to lie to her, Gine fed the truth. "Yes. He's in the back, inside the incubator."

"Still? Heh. I figured you'd be training him in preparation for combat or maybe even basic social skills. Would you mind taking me to him?"

"Of course not." After taking off her chef gloves, Gine showed her Saiyan peer the route where she could find Kakarot. Following after her, the two Saiyan females eventually made it into the room where Kakarot was placed.

Solely just by looking at this damn near empty room, it became very apparent as to this room's purpose. However, the woman wasn't here for all that. Seeing Kakarot inside the incubator sleeping, she was quick to pull out a scouter and place it against the glass.

Moments before her index finger came in touch with the button to scout Kakarot's power-level, Gine held in her breath. She just knew that if a certain standard was met, then her son would more than likely...just be sent off like every other disposable lower-class Saiyan child.

PIPIPIPIPIPIPIPI

The entire time the device beeped, Gine didn't take a single breath. She didn't believe in prayers but she hoped that her son's power just miraculously spiked.

"Huh. A Power-Level of 5." The woman had a hard time holding back her laughter. "I'm not a combatant myself but this...this is pathetic." Though doing her best, the woman couldn't help but let out an obnoxious chuckle.

Gine's body tensed up and her fists balled. Via body language she told her Saiyan peer that she didn't take kindly to the insults but she had just been ignored but Gine knew that she'd be a fool to actually take some form of action. Not only was she far too weak but even if she survived physical confrontation with her superior, she'd be severely punished as a result.

"Well…" she sighed. "Even with his puny power-level, I'm sure a few trustees of mine can still manage to find a Planet that even Kakarot can take down with very little difficulty."

"Can't he just stay here?" Gine asked.

"I beg your pardon?"

Feeling desperate now, Gine had to give it a shot. "Can't you just let him stay here on Planet Vegeta to grow up as a common worker like me? Maybe he can work in the meat distribution or maybe work as a constructor...animal hunter...site manager? Something not combat related?"

"With all due respect, Gine...you are a lower-class Saiyan, yes?"

"...yes."

"And before you got into working on Planet Vegeta, you made it clear that you weren't fit to become a warrior, correct?"

Gine knew exactly where she was getting at, but she had to make her point, too. "I get that, I really do, but please try to understand my point of v-"

"That talk you can bring up with the king," she interrupted. Not having the time nor gratitude to sit and listen to this pleading woman, Gine had no choice but to watch as her son was taken out of the incubator and brought away.

Being so suddenly woken from his sleep, Kakarot didn't take very kindly to this. From the moment he saw a face that didn't belong to his mother or father, the little boy got rowdy and started to whine and kick.

**B A M**

Kakarot caught the woman dead center in the chin with his foot. Gine, while upset at the current situation, even couldn't keep herself from smiling at this.

"For a weakling, he sure does have the fighting spirit." All she needed to do was squeeze his tail and Kakarot was out like a light. This permitted her to travel toward her destination in peace.

Seeing her take off into the bright and hot sun, Gine knew she had to make sure her boy was to stay here. She didn't want to break any rules but safety for her children was most important above all else. She didn't have to go through this with Raditz because he stayed on Planet Vegeta to train but she would have done the exact same if her first born were in Kakarot's predicament.

"Gine."

Hearing her beloved's voice caught Gine by surprise, though unfortunately at the worst moment. Still, after not seeing Bardock for weeks, she couldn't help but run over and embrace him.

Bardock's eyes darted back and forth as his face got red. In private this was no issue, but there were many eyes on them. He could feel some Saiyans making remarks or perhaps even laughing, but the scarred Saiyan wouldn't be able to tell...he just felt it.

As quickly as Gine hugged Bardock, she pulled herself away. "Bardock, we have to get Kakarot!"

Bardock could have sworn that he just saw his boy getting picked up by one of King Vegeta's bootlickers. As expected, his son was being sent off. "He's going to be assigned to a planet, isn't he?"

"That's the problem!"

"Seems pretty normal to me," Bardock responded. "I mean, didn't you expect this to happen?"

"Just because I anticipated it doesn't mean I wanted it to begin with, Bardock. Kakarot can't even speak yet and they're just gonna send him off on some world hoping he comes to tear it apart? Not only is he at an disadvantage because he's untrained but he has to worry about the Galactic Patrol as well."

"They're going to assign him to a world where they're sure he can take it on no problem."

"But that's not the only point, Bardock and you know it."

Bardock knew that Gine was right. No matter how much justifying he could try and do, there was no definite rebuttal to Gine's points. "So what is it that you're going to do about it? These types of orders are final and you know that."

"I'm going to have a discussion with King Vegeta." Far beyond heated at this point, Gine had mustered up the courage to go and talk to King Vegeta herself. Bardock knew when she was bluffing and these weren't one of those times. Seeing her take off quickly into the sky headed directly for the Royal castle made it quite obvious she wasn't joking.

Bardock wasn't left with any other option. At this point, the Saiyan HAD to go along with her. He wasn't going to just stand aside and leave Gine to the sharks. No, he actually cared.

* * *

The King's throne room was a very long, and nearly empty hall with a seat for the King at the end which was guarded by a total of ten Saiyans, all of whom were the only Mid-Class soldiers of Planet Vegeta. These Saiyans were the ones with great battles under their belt, usually older Saiyans as most of their people didn't get to live very long because of their lifestyle.

The only form of light that had been allowed in King Vegeta's throne room had been the light going through the few sets of stained glass windows. With said light, one could see the long and thick red carpet that reached from the entrance all until the steps directly next to the King's chair.

Here in this throne room was the King's only time of peace, to be quite frank. Whenever he wasn't on a special planet and working off-world, he was working on Planet Vegeta. He tended to business updates around the clock everyday and made sure things remained in order. If something was wrong, then he'd get things corrected...one way or the other.

As for the current moment, King Vegeta spoke with two elder Saiyans, two people of whom he trusted the most when it came to discussions regarding various topics. The present subject revolved around his son...Prince Vegeta.

"How old will the Prince be by the time he makes it back?" the King asked.

"He should still be around eight years old," one of them answered.

"His power continues to grow," the other said. "We got an update from Nappa telling us that the Prince's power has even recently surpassed his own! Prince Vegeta is making extraordinary progress for his age. If he keeps this up, you'll be surpassed by the time he's full grown."

Hearing this made the King smile. Under the hypothetical notion of his son being some random Saiyan, King Vegeta's pride would be wounded at the fact that there are Saiyans stronger than him. But this is his son! Hearing that Prince Vegeta has even greater potential than he yet again swelled the King up with pride. But still...he needed more than that.

Just hearing that Prince Vegeta will be stronger than he, the King, did not mean that his son will grow to be stronger than Freeza. Looking over the life of every Saiyan, King Vegeta has come to realize that everyone hits a barrier that they can't break unless they survive withstanding death itself from battle.

His smile faded as quickly as it appeared.

"And even then, who's to say that his power will exceed Freeza's!?" Vegeta boomed. His sudden jump off his throne and onto his two feet startled the elder Saiyans, coercing them to back up on instinct. Hastily lowering his tone, Vegeta made a mental note that he needs to control his temper. He had so much stress that the most minor issues would even set him off. "Prince Vegeta is our only hope for salvation from under Freeza and his snake of a father. If he doesn't progress at superb rates, then we'll never be able to remove our true obstacles."

Very rare was anyone able to speak so openly bad about Freeza and live to tell it. King Vegeta was smart and made sure that nobody attended his throne room with any turned on scouters, for it holds a chance of being overheard by Freeza.

"You are right, King Vegeta."

He knew he was but he didn't know how else to go about things.

"So...any ideas?"

Before anybody could suggest anything, the doors of the King's throne room had been unexpectedly opened.

"What the hell…?"

Not expecting any visitors, King Vegeta had grown the utmost curious as to this unwelcomed guest. And most of all, he could tell by the appearances of Bardock and Gine that if anything, they were lower-class warriors.

One of the Saiyans that were assigned to guard the throne room had stood before the two Saiyans Bardock and Gine and spoke. "The Saiyan female wishes to speak with you, my King."

Vegeta was already aggravated though he remained cool and slowly seated himself back onto his throne. "I don't recall requesting an audience…"

Both Gine and Bardock bowed in the presence of the King prior to the former of the two beginning to talk.

"I know you didn't expect or want any unexpected visitors, but I have a request that's very urgent...my King."

And here King Vegeta could feel a strong sense of dejavu falling upon him. Despite the familiarity of this scene, he allowed Gine to continue. "Proceed."

"Recently, my son Kakarot has been picked up. He's a lower-class Saiyan and is set to be sent away as an infiltration baby. I'm here to beg of you that you allow my son to stay here on Planet Vegeta. He can grow up to be a fine worker here."

"A worker?" King Vegeta rubbed his facial hair. As he thought in the silent room, Vegeta's beard scratching could be heard. The King was making it obvious that he was putting some thought into this.

Bardock, right by Gine, was the most tense than anyone in that room. One wrong step-hell-one wrong word and they're dead. And if there's one thing about Bardock, he's shown himself to fear nobody, though he isn't stupid, either. He just hoped Gine knew what she was doing.

"What is your name?" Vegeta questioned.

"I am Gine," she responded.

"Ah...Gine." Looking at her and her mate side by side, King Vegeta finally figured out why the name felt familiar to her. "You're the mother of the young combatant, Raditz." The only reason he is even remotely familiar with such names is because of the fact that he had Raditz personally assigned to working alongside Prince Vegeta, Nappa, and two other Saiyan warriors.

"Yes, my King."

"As far as working goes, you realize that this is how things function, yes? Saiyans are to first see if they're worthy enough to even survive their assigned world. If they come back and are deemed unfit for battle, then they become workers. It's as simple as that. You, yourself went through this, did you not?"

"Yes," Gine responded honestly.

Bardock subtly shook his head. As the seconds passed by in this area, he felt like Gine was wasting her time. As far as he was concerned, Vegeta would deny her and send them back on their way home.

"So what's the matter with this young boy? He is related to Raditz, so sure enough he should be of some promise, no?"

"No, he's the total opposite. I could see that Raditz takes more after his father as my second child takes after me. Bardock was born and raised a combatant like Raditz but Kakarot shows no signs of that. He shows that he is just like me. He was born with a power-level of five, my King...FIVE. Even for lower-class Saiyans, that's extremely too low. And because of how he takes after me so much, I just don't see how he'll be fit as a warrior. I mean...I'm not fit to be one at all, right? I've proven myself more useful here in the meat distribution more than the battlefield or anywhere else for that matter."

Listening to Gine ramble on about everything left Bardock and even a few of the elder Saiyans by surprise. She sure did have a lot to say and what was even more commendable was the fact that she made sure to come correct, despite the obvious frustration she exuded. Maybe she really could pull this off.

"So what would be the point of sending him off to some world out there? Even if it's a world full of weaklings, Kakarot can't even speak and isn't properly trained in combat. He doesn't know what the moon can do for him so he won't use it responsibly. This doesn't even include the possible dangerous outliers-the strong warriors off-world. On top of that, we have the Galactic Patrol to worry about. We consistently hear about failed missions from young Saiyans because of their interference and it proves that the system is flawed. Even if your purpose is to weed out the weak from the strong with this system, those considered too weak to fight could still be used as workers here. Why waste Saiyan breath like that? Imagine how much more prosperous we could be if there weren't weak Saiyans like me or my son being sent out there into the world?"

"She's got a good point…" one of the mid-class warriors spoke out of turn. Taking the liberty to speak so openly repaid him with a nudge to the gut, which made him go owie quite loud.

King Vegeta ignored him and just stayed in his own thoughts. He recalled when Paragus, a former comrade, came in a very similar manner begging for his son to stay on Planet Vegeta so that he could be raised as a proper combatant. Vegeta denied for his own personal reasons but here, with this predicament...he'd get no personal gain from sending some lower-class scum out in the universe. All of Gine's points were made conscientiously, to a point where he even questioned how he ran things regarding Saiyan youngsters. While he could just spite her and send her son off anyway, King Vegeta saw no entertainment in doing such. And instead of being rude, she was greatly respectful, despite her anger.

And in response, Vegeta only spoke three words.

" _ **Consider it done."**_

Gine's heart dropped in relief as Bardock just stopped breathing during the midst of an inhale. The scarred Saiyan was at a loss for words, unable to fathom the fact that King Vegeta actually listened and acquiesced to Gine...a LOWER-CLASS Saiyan woman.

"Unbelievable…" Bardock muttered, aghast.

With his head leaned toward one of his elder advisors, King Vegeta intently listened for all words that were being whispered to him. After he finished, the Saiyan King nodded and gave his final say to Gine. "By word of my trusted advisor, Kakarot was to be assigned to a Planet called Earth. There the inhabitants so weak that fully grown Earthlings wouldn't be able to handle a Saiyan child. Kakarot will stay here and we'll have some other Saiyan child take his place."

"I appreciate that, King Vegeta. Thank you so much."

"But you'll be responsible for all of Kakarot's actions until he's fully grown. Since he's under your wing, he'll be an honest reflection of you and if you're unable to get him to work properly and causes trouble, he'll be dealt with. Are we at an understanding, Gine? Bardock?"

"Yes, my King," the two said simultaneously.

"Good. Be on your merry way, now."

Taking their leave, Bardock and Gine walked in perfect unison until the Saiyan throne doors were shut behind them. From then on, both pounced into the air where they could fly freely.

"That...went well."

When it came to Bardock and how he could be so monotone at times, the ability to spot any jokes from him were very hard. He could be speaking the funniest joke of all time and some people would believe that he's threatening them just by how cut-throat his voice is.

"Can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not, Bardock."

"No, I'm serious. I didn't expect things to go so smoothly. You stood your ground and kept it cordial as well."

"You seem quite happy about it," Gine joked with a flirtatious smile.

Bardock grinned back at her.

" _ **Maybe I am."**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rather odd precocious young girl catches the attention of King Vegeta. Raditz starts his first conquest as a combatant with Prince Vegeta, Nappa, and his comrades. Also, as Bardock is shown to grow more, he is subsequently tasked with potentially the most hazardous mission he's ever had to face. Will he make it?

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 2**

**"On World Off World"**

While very busy during the day, once night time bestowed itself on Planet Vegeta, sounds of the cool wind was all that one would usually here. Outside work and other labor was usually done once the evening came, so people got to relax a bit before they slept. Though at a time most would be sleep, some couldn't get any at all. Gine could rest easily now that she finally got Kakarot to stop acting up but Bardock couldn't even drift off to despite the fact that he had his eyes closed for a good hour. Restless and bored, he quickly tired of lying down in the nicely cushioned bed with his mate and son.

Hell, just seeing Kakarot here made him realize this was the first time he ever laid down with one of his children in the bed.

_I'm really getting soft._

After leaving from the room, the bare chested Saiyan found himself in the kitchen, fixing a cup of water. Grabbing a yellow cone shaped fruit with green spots from the counter, he squeezed it over the cup to mix it with the water, which left a fresh yet sweet and satisfying feeling for the tongue. Once he put the cap over the cup, he shook the drink and shook it well. After 5 good seconds of mixing it up, he reopened it and took a sip. Going over to the middle of the room, the Saiyan looked out at the beautiful bright blue light that was being illuminated from the hundreds of sparkling stars on his homeworld.

Such a beautiful sight on a world filled of mostly savage killers.

For some reason, the sounds of a person's actions during the night time felt to be amplified by that of ten times. Though gone through countless battles with ear damaging sounds throughout his life as a warrior, Bardock still managed to hear the tiny little soft footsteps making their way up to him from behind.

Turning around, Bardock's eyes moved around until he spotted his son Kakarot, who didn't seem tired at all—much like him.

The boy, like his father, only wore his pants as all removed their armor prior to lying down. It was amazing just scrutinizing over the physical appearance of the little boy. Bardock always found it crazy just how much they looked alike. Add the scar on his cheek and Kakarot would look 100 percent like his father.

"Can't sleep either, can you?"

Kakarot walked toward Bardock until he made it to his father's leg. From then on, the young Saiyan child carelessly clutched onto the man's leg in an effort to crawl up.

Feeling a finger nail virtually pierce his skin, Bardock eyes widened in surprise. Acting on instinct, he picked the boy up by his tail and placed him onto the counter of which he was leaning against. "This is where you'll be chopping up meat so try not to make a mess, alright?"

"Ahuh." Looking outside, Kakarot's eyes had been captivated by the dazzling stars he saw up above him. For a child his age it was an absolute mystery. Seeing his son hypnotized by the sight, Bardock chuckled and just took another sip.

"I used to wonder what there was beyond this world, too." Going back down memory lane, Bardock didn't notice as he just started on running his mouth, something quite uncharacteristic of him. "Being raised as a warrior, I couldn't stop thinking about the potential endless fights I'd get into. The chances of dying increased as I got older but so did my love for battle. Once I finally stepped on the battlefield for the first time, I got to really become my own warrior. Of course, I've had doubters but I overcame. Now, years later, I'm strong...and respected."

If he could rewind time to relive everything he did, Bardock would do it again-along with the pain and happiess he's endured in the past.

Due to talking so much, he didn't even realize his son stealthily taking his cup and drinking all that had remained inside. The man didn't mind though and just continued to speaking with his son, who was more so the listener of their interaction. Young, sure, but the boy had a decent sense of understanding.

"You're going to want to find out, too, I know that. When it comes to children, it's so easy to tell. Some have that fighting spirit within them and you being a lower-class working Saiyan won't stop you." Removing himself from the counter, Bardock took a few steps forward, looking up. After hearing from Gine that Kakarot had deliberately kicked the person who came to pick him up, he knew. Saiyan children who are rowdy and wild just typically have that warrior aspect to them. With his age and inherent nature of paying attention to even the most minute things, Bardock could tell which Saiyans would grow up to be warriors or just ordinary workers.

For the moment, Kakarot's father was silent yet the kid paid just as much attention to him when he was talking. Waiting intently for the next few words to flow out of Bardock's mouth, he didn't get any continuation of word until his father turned around to look him in the eye.

"Don't let your status hold you back from what you really are...whatever you may turn out to be."

Once he finished, Bardock felt as if a burden had came off his shoulders. Typically, he was closed off, even to Gine. But his son was only a young boy, probably not thinking too much of his talk.

Little did Bardock realize that Gine had been eavesdropping on him since he started opening up to his boy. For Gine this came to a great surprise but for her, it was positively good. She knew Bardock wasn't as hard as he always let himself off to be and this just confirmed it even more. There was even a time ago where Bardock was totally indifferent to Kakarot and Raditz.

She truly was rubbing off on him.

* * *

Scribbling noises from pencils writing added on top of beeping and restless typing let King Vegeta realize that his subordinates were at work. In this room where scientific research was being overlooked, Vegeta had his two most experienced scientists Moroko and Shito looking over their own set of hypotheses regarding matters that they worked on. However, amongst them and the other adults that religiously laboured, it was a child that caught King Vegeta's eye.

After observing over this young girl, it became apparent to the King that this child was a clone very similar looking to the blue-haired women that usually spent their time collecting data from Saiyan children in the nursing room. Other clones, however, sometimes spent times in other fields of science. On top of this, she had colored purple hair whereas the others had blue colored hair.

_Did she do that herself?_

Curious as to why a cloned child was in this room, the King spoke up. "What is she doing here?"

None of the scientists had to look over to whom King Vegeta was pointing at as they were all very well aware that a child would look out of place here. After seeing just how smart this young girl was, the scientists decided that they should allow this girl to work alongside them, given that she had already proven herself.

"Uh, she's been assigned to uh...work on genetically engineering the Saibaimen...sir," one of them informed.

Slowly turning around in her rolling chair with a smug grin on her face, she explained her current situation abruptly. "My King, I've been assigned to work here amongst the best for good reason. I've already been able to modify the life support system inside our pods to where its users never run out of oxygen. After I finish what I'm currenly doing, I'm going to figure out a way to have warriors healed while on their way back from missions."

_So that was her._

She couldn't have been older than the Prince yet the perception she gave off of herself was telling of the fact that she had a very mature mind. Though a bit weirded out by the fact that she was a child...King Vegeta didn't question it too much. She seemed highly intelligent and that was all he needed to help him reach his goals: intelligent individuals.

"Explain your current objective."

"One of your trusted advisors informed us on how we need to find a way in order to make a Saiyan's progress in strength more efficient. I reckoned that we used the Cultivars that are usually grown for battle to help out a Saiyan warrior has been used more for combat than for training like they used to be…"

"And who told you?"

"I was told by one of the older men here," she answered, pointing to Moroko, a former combatant—now scientist.

"Hm…"

"So I figured that we grow these things out and incapacitate them. Once free to use, research on these things and figure out ways to make them stronger. I actually feel like working on the soil and engineering it would be able to better our current objective but my mentors suggest I should just test on the Saibaimen themselves. Current progress is slow but we're trying to make a breakthrough here. If progress is stagnant, then I'll go directly back to my idea: engineering the soil."

He had a perfect understanding and was very okay with her explanation of things. Her words felt genuine and it seemed as if she was really working hard. King Vegeta liked how she merely turned right back around and continued working by jotting down personal notes. She wasn't there to diddle daddle and hard work was what he appreciated.

And the lack of bootlicking from her was quite unusual for him but she was respectful and honest at the very least. "Well...I hope that you have this job done prior to Prince Vegeta's arrival." As usual, the King put on deadlines when it came to subjects that were deemed essential.

"We'll need more time than that," the young child told Vegeta as she examined over a raw, ungrown Saibaiman, which took the appearance of a pea in not only shape, but color as well. "Can you give us time to finish this before Prince Vegeta comes back AFTER leaving again? I can assure you the job will be perfectly done within that time frame."

Time was of the essence and that was the only reason that King Vegeta that this needed to be done as soon as possible so that his son could have something to assist with his development in power. However, at the same time, time was needed in order for things to pan out accordingly. Believing it'd be best to tread safely than end up sorry, the King agreed. "Very well. That's the deadline you're given then."

Just prior to exiting the room, King Vegeta looked back over his shoulder. "What is your name, child?"

Though just a mere clone and naturally inferior to the Saiyans, her and the other replicas still had the same style of naming that the other Saiyans had. "The name is Kuni."

_I'll remember that name._

Vegeta had a very good eye out for potential prodigies and she was now on that list. If she were to continue improving as a scientist as she aged then she'd be a possible ultimate asset. Right now her role is big enough as is and could potentially help out not just the prince, but many other growing Saiyans as well.

This was something King Vegeta continued to think about constantly as well.

The points that the Saiyan woman Gine brought up to him were things he couldn't get out of his head. Would it truly be more beneficial to them by letting Saiyan children stay on Planet Vegeta, whatever the cause?

A lower-class Saiyan would just either be trained or raised as a worker, also keeping the fertility rates higher, increasing the chances of strong warriors being birthed. Children being idiotically killed by the Galactic Patrol was more of a nuisance than a hindrance but King Vegeta would be dumb to not look at as many perspectives as possible. If Prince Vegeta were to be the ones to free them from under Freeza and his father, then he'd need an army of capable warriors by his side.

Rubbing his goatee with one hand and having the other behind his back, King Vegeta remained in his thoughts as he walked around various different hallways and corridors. Can't be a true King if one doesn't use their head.

* * *

A rather civilized set of people: Dino-jin. They took the appearance of anything relative to dinosaurs, with their excessively sharp killer teeth and lethal claws. And even though one would assume these people to be a pack of ravenous and monstruous beasts, they went through personal developments as a people: made pacts, innovations—growth. Precautious and territorialy, sure, albeit they wouldn't be the ones to initiate unnecessary violence—even toward foreigners.

Their cloudless planet with beautiful dark green skies and tall lustrious trees were filled with intelligent life. Unlike most intelligent life-forms, they had a government, its citizens, and a very special defense force. They had been attacked before from normal space pirates. For that reason, they built their defense force and trained warriors to fight and use specalized weaponry.

The scaly reptilian inhabitants of this world were somewhat advanced, though not advanced enough to foresee the danger that came toward them in the form of five genocidal Saiyans; nor were they prepared for them.

Two duo ships and one singular attack pod all came crashing down in the middle of Planet Dino's capital city. It being a heavily guarded area, the casual citizens were all forced to hide inside a place by authority instead of standing there in shock. All the buildings in the area weren't tall at all, mostly little stores that connected to one another for hundreds of miles. Everything was perfectly convenient for its citizens.

The Dino-jin that were apart of the defensive unit had their silver weapons with red horns that appeared to be suppressors aimed at the mysterious figures as all five of them showed their face.

Two of the five warriors were both quite relevant in power, though one was darker in tone than the other and also had a patch of gravity defying hair that curved up on both side ends. The two were Bruss and Sprout.

The biggest and most intimidating figure was Nappa, a balding Saiyan with a growing mustache. He at least stood at seven feet tall all the while maintaining a muscly body with extreme definition. This was the Saiyan they were most worried about, though shouldn't have been.

Prince Vegeta was the one they should have had the most concern over, although his size wasn't intimidating at alt. Merely at the age of eight, he was already the strongest of his group, with Nappa falling behind second.

Making hoarse noises that sounded like that the Dino-jin were gargling on hot water and salt, it became obvious to the Saiyans that they were verbally communicating. In their interaction they were trying to decipher whether or not if they were enemies. It didn't take long to figure this out as one immediately brought up the point that they disrespectfully crash landed into their infrastructure.

"Let's give Raditz the honors," Nappa said. "After all chump...this is your first mission as a combatant."

Raditz relished this moment for the longest. Not even hesitating, the Saiyan prepared to incinerate them all to ashes. However, before he could, the Dino-jin shot first.

Unlike most weapons, theirs didn't have any bullets or lasers come flying. Instead, ultra sonic roars with the capabilities of involuntarily paralyzing their opponents had been resonating from the guns. This was to leave an opening long enough so that one of them could leave a lethal blow to take down their enemies.

Nappa and the others weren't effected by it at all in the least but Raditz seemed to be struggling to move his body. One of the Dino people made an attempt to take advantage of Raditz's opening, making an attempt to slit the Saiyan's throat with its black razor sharp nails.

Bruss and Sprout rammed into two of the 10 Dino guards as Nappa and Vegeta turned 5 more into ashes. Two other Dino-jin ran off while they kept their tools aimed for Raditz, who now had more leeway.

The long-haired Saiyan child quickly raised his left arm but was hit by a hard scaly fist. Feeling as if his arm had snapped, Raditz quickly grew angry and retaliated by punching the Dino creature in the jaw.

The punch didn't do much for him though and he was thanked with a fist to the face as well, which had the boy sliding onto the smooth roads of Planet Dino. He hastily got back up and rushed in for his opponent, who stood its ground.

Raditz came out with the element of surprise by firing off a violet colored chi attack at point blank range prior to catching the Dino person with a vicious knee to the crotch. Under the assumption that this would do some damage, Raditz had been taken aback once he realized neither attacks did anything harmful to his opponent. The Saiyan ducked under a swing and tripped his enemy by wrapping his tail around its ankle.

Meanwhile, Vegeta and the others were having far too easy of a time slaughtering their enemies. With blood dripping at the end of his boot subsequent to squashing one's head, Nappa had killed the very last of the few that resided in the area. "Weaklings."

Nudging Sprout on the shoulder, Bruss motioned his head to the side. There they could see Raditz and his enemy both fighting on virtually even terms. As they went back and forth, it seemed as if the fight would go on forever.

Seeing the enjoyment in Raditz's eyes as he fought elicited smiles from Bruss and Sprout, too. It had been far too long since they even managed to fight with people on the same level as them.

Prince Vegeta observed Raditz's technique as he was hovering in the sky. Very much like himself, Raditz always tended to strike for the areas that really hurt: gut, temple, nose, liver shots, as well as kidney shots. Despite the fact that Raditz and his current opponent were both at a stalemate, it became apparent that the Dino person was far more tolerant to pain than Raditz was.

Putting two and two together, Vegeta came to the realization that the Dino-jin had a much more durable skin than theirs, which allowed them to endure strikes and attacks much better than his own people. With the understanding that a fight between these two would take far too long, Vegeta waited for the perfect moment to just end the fight for his comrade.

Kicking up dirt as a way of distraction, Raditz hopped up onto the Dino's head, landing with one foot. By swinging his other leg, he kicked the Dino square in the snout. For the first time he managed to get the creature on its back. Just as he was hoping to finish the job, Vegeta fired off a thin yet sharp beam of energy that pierced the Dino's cranium.

"Huh?" Raditz hopped back from the thing, quite confused as to what just happened.

"Whoah, Vegeta!" Nappa exclaimed. "The fight was just gettin' good!"

"The genetic makeup grants them the capacity to endure pain better than us. If one of us are fighting one of them at equal power, chances are, the fight would take far too long. Not only that, but we'd be more vulnerable to surrendering to the damage taken first."

"Really?" they all asked in unison.

"Yes…" the Prince then grinned. "but I also just wanted the kill, of course."

"Very classy," Raditz remarked sarcastically.

"Besides…" Vegeta clicked his scouter and looked over the area. "We have hundreds of people hidden inside these stores. I say we get into the appetizers before we go for the real challenges." As a demonstration, Vegeta fired off a plethora of energy attacks at countless different stores in the area. Within the blink of an eye, a city that was left unharmed now had multiple dead bodies and a myriad of buildings set ablaze. Because of the fact that the stores were all built directly next to one another, the heat spread like wildfire.

Not even half a minute later and the most satisfying blood-curdling screams of horror, agony, and despair brought a smile to the faces of these five sadistic intruders.

"Even if they survive the fires, they'll be in a world of pain," Bruss noted.

"Then they'll wish they were dead," Sprout chimed in.

The sounds of echoing alarms caught the attention of the Saiyan warriors. To them that only meant one thing: death and destruction. From afar, Vegeta and Co. spotted hundreds of flying bikes zooming their way toward them.

"Oh, this is going to be a blast…" Nappa smiled sinisterly.

"Remember what I told you fools," Vegeta reminded them. "They're quite durable so go for weak points—tear off limbs if you even have to."

Nappa was grinding his teeth back and forth in mere anticipation to attack. Moments like these were the ones that he lived for more than most. Yes he love to fight but the calamity and horrors that he inflicted on others via battle was his sense of gratification.

"Give em hell," Vegeta said.

"Say less, Prince!" One of the Dino-jin that were riding in the frontlines saw Nappa slowly motioning his right hand up, as if he was signalling something. Mere moments after he raised his index and middle finger, those riding in lead of the other soldiers all saw black.

An explosion had followed and many were caught into it.

Bruss, Sprout, Vegeta, and Raditz all dashed passed Nappa into the smoke, where they continued their massacre.

The once green cloudless skies of Planet Dino was now filled with black smoke that did not stop building up due to the incessant fires. Those that were enduring and suffering from the fires as they were entrapped did not manage to deal with the toxic fumes that came as a result and died a harrowing death.

As the citizens of Planet Dino fell…

So did its protectors.

* * *

"So what we bettin' on now?"

Now a new day and the harsh heat was beating on Planet Vegeta as if the planet owed it money. Throughout the countless hours that had passed since then, Bardock still wasn't able to get much rest. The Saiyan got some decent shut-eye for a nice half hour but Kakarot's wailing woke him up and got him in a bad mood.

So now here he was, hanging out with companions of his.

Toma, Selypa, Pumbukin, Totapo, and Leek all resided in an area just outside the area in which Bardock's home was, where they didn't have as much people around them.

Here, the crew felt as if they could keep their guards down because of the natural comfort they all had with one another. Just outside one of the Saiyan homes, they all sat in chairs made out of dirt rock around a single table, which they used to play a card game.

Toma cracked his knuckles with a big grin on his face. Warm up was over and he wished to start putting things on the line that the winner would receive. He's won more than the others typically in this game, which proved that he generally had the best of luck. So by nature, Toma was expecting to win this game.

The only one out of the six Saiyans that decided not to play was Totapo, who's typically more quiet and aloof than the others. He didn't really bother anybody but he enjoyed the company of Toma and Co. He was the one dealing out three cards to every other person participating in this game of Card Janken.

Once Toma received his hand, he had a rather difficult time hiding his smile.

"I say we bet on these." Reaching into her armored chestplate, Selypa pulled out a little closed bottle with green looking slime inside of it. After putting it on the table, some of the other participants got a little eager. Usually they bet food or the profit they earned from their completed missions but when it came to Saibaimen, they were definitely something to play for.

"Oh, Saibaimen…" the big husky Pumbukin chuckled. Reaching into the pocket of his ripped and ragged animal pelt that was placed under his armor, he pulled out two bottles. "Let's kick it up a notch."

Totapo nonchalantly pulled out five bottles and put them on the table. "Add these too. Winner takes all."

"Nice going!" Seripa exclaimed. "Now...Bardock? How many do you got?"

Bardock reached into his chest plate as well. Unlike the others, it took him a while to get all of what he needed. Even then, getting them all with one hand wasn't enough. The sight of Bardock having to use both of his hands to grabbing bottles of Saibaimen inside his shirt was quite funny, even eliciting a soft and almost silent snicker from Totapo. The rest were all chuckling out loud.

Once Bardock managed to get all of them together, he slammed 10 different bottles onto the table. This received some ahhs and oohs from his comrades, especially Toma, who thought he had the most with six total bottles.

"That's at least 40 Saibaimen you got with you," Leek pointed out.

"I don't even use these things," Bardock said. "I'd rather transform under the full moon than resort to those ugly creatures."

"I feel that," Toma said, in full agreement. He, like Bardock, loved the idea of a challenge in combat. This was the reason that Toma's team was the very best in the first place. They always challenged themselves and even competed against one another at times. Because of the extra push, they continued to grow in strength. Toma figured that it wouldn't be long before they were to get promoted. He longed for the very day that he could rank up.

Pumbukin looked over the total amount that they had on the table, being the one to do the math. "one, three, eight...fourteen, twenty four…" He then slowly looked over to Leek. "Where are yours?"

Leek smiled awkwardly and scratched the back of his head. "I kinda used all mine, hehe…"

"Looks like you'll be spectating with Totapo then," Selypa told him.

"Ah, really?"

Totapo was the one to answer Leke by jacking three of the cards he had in hand and placed them back into the deck on the table. "Yep."

"Hehe." Toma looked at his three cards, being sure to keep them hidden from the others. "Let's get this show on the road."

All at once, the Saiyans playing dropped down one card simultaneously.

"Rock," Toma said, calling his card out.

"Rock," Bardock said, also having the same card.

"Wow…" Pumbukin smacked his lips. "I got scissors."

"Rock," Selypa said, calling her card.

"That's strike one, Pumbukin," Leek warned him. "Two more and you're out."

"Yeah, like I don't know that," he huffed.

The Saiyans all picked up their second card and slammed it down.

"Rock," Toma said.

"Paper," Bardock called out.

"Rock," Pumbukin called out.

"Scissors," Selypa said with a grin.

Totapo, having a piece of paper, made sure to keep score of everything. Leek was all in his personal space, looking after Totapo's notes, despite the big Saiyan's obvious discomfort with the mean mug on his face. Still, he bloced Leke out and made sure to tell the score.

"Strike one for Toma, Selypa, and Bardock. Strike two for Pumbukin."

Pumbukin bit his tongue and decided to focus on the game. Already getting frustrated at the very start, he got quiet. in his mind, if he focused on the game and thought solely about winning, then he'd come out victorious. Simple logic didn't occur to him, given that he didn't even realize that this game was all about chance. For that reason, the other Saiyans didn't take it as seriously-they had actual common sense.

"Let's just get this over with so I can win," Toma said.

Setting their last card down, they all awaited the results.

Toma got scissors.

Bardock got scissors.

Selypa got paper.

Pumbukin got paper.

"Son of a bitch." The aggravated Pumbukin swiftly rose up from his seat and stomped right over into his house, showing no regard for knocking his chair over. Toma's face was getting quite red as he died of laughter at Pumbukin's obnoxious and unnecessary reaction.

"I'll never understand why he takes this game so serious," Toma commented through fits of laughter. "At least come back and watch me win, Pumbukin!"

Pumbukin ignored Toma and the other's laughter as he just slammed his door right behind me. "LET ME KNOW WHEN WE GO ON OUR NEXT MISSION!"

"Heh." Bardock shook his head.

"Selypa, strike two."

Totapo handed the last three Saiyans one extra card.

Leek sat back and watched in anticipation. It almost always came down to these three. Maybe it could be Seripa to win...perhaps Toma. Bardock? He didn't know but that's what made it so exciting to him...for some reason.

"I got Paper," Toma said after slamming his card on the table.

"Scissors," Seripa said.

"Scissors…" Bardock said.

"Toma, strike two."

After being hands yet again, Bardock resulted in getting his second strike and by this time, everyone was on their last go. It could go either way at this point and this last deal would be the victor of twenty three free sets of Saibaimen.

Rock

Rock

Paper

"You gotta be kiddin' me!" Toma moved his forehead to the edge of the table and sighed in defeat. He never took kindly to loss, whether in a fight or even a friendly competition. So sure that he was going to win, Toma's world came crashing down that moment. Unlike Pumbukin, Toma was aware of this being solely about chance but god dammit he wanted to win.

"Hahahaha!" Selypa had no qualms shoving it in their face as she grabbed the bottles one by one. "I'm gonna take the liberty of using all of these on the next mission."

"That's honestly a real waste of Saibaimen," Leek told her.

"Think I care? I'm gonna have at least 100 of these things running around on one planet. I bet none of you could even imagine the type of destruction that'll bring!"

"Sounds like you're going more so for entertainment than to actually get the job done yourself," Bardock said.

"Sometimes entertainment is what beats fighting, Bardock," Toma chimed in. Slowly looking over to Selypa, who winked at him, he spoke to her. "I don't know about the others but I'm going with. I can imagine that idea of yours being fun."

"Hm…" Selypa bit her lip, thinking. "Sure, I'll let you come on along. What about you?" she asked Bardock, nudging him in the shoulder. "Ya comin'?"

"On a mission like that? Of course not. I rather fight and cause destruction myself than walk around watching brainless monsters others doing it."

"Looks like he's out," Totapo said, stating the obvious.

"I'm definitely not going," Leek said. "I'm going to chill back here and rest up for a bit. I've saved up enough to not have to sell any missions for a while."

Toma placed his fist to his mouth. "Cough, Wuss, cough, cough!"

"What was that?" Leek asked.

Toma cleared his throat and bit his lip from the inside to refrain from smiling. "Ahem. Nothing."

"Someone's on their way here," Totapo called out.

The Saiyans now at attention, all of them got up from their seats and awaited the arrival of this unexpected visitor. While all the others were looking hard, Bardock was the first to easily pick up on who it was. Realizing it was an old comrade of his, Bardock took it easy.

"It's just Taro," Bardock told them.

"You talking about Toma's twin?" Selypa asked jokingly.

"Who else could I be talking about?"

Toma realized that Bardock had joined in on the inside joke and it aggravated him. "Taro isn't my damn twin…"

"Still your brother," Leek told Toma. "Really, Taro is Toma but going bald with a moostache, heheh."

"Haha, very funny…" Toma sat back down in his chair, as did Totapo. They then went on to shuffling their cards.

Now a retired Saiyan combatant who was well up in age, Taro was in control of keeping track of Saiyan combat assignments. He watched out for those that left and came back. If a Saiyan or group of Saiyans didn't come back for a certain amount of time, King Vegeta would be informed, which in turn, one of the higher-class Saiyans would be sent to investigate. And for those that came back in a successful mission, Taro checked them off and gave them their deserved reward.

Touching down right before Bardock, he greeted the Saiyan with an offer for a handshake. "Long time no see, Bardock." He was a short and stocky Saiyan unlike his little brother, who was tall and more leaned out. Regardless, the two brothers could get along well with anyone if treated with respect. "Glad to see you aren't dead yet."

Since these two worked alongside together at one point in time, Bardock just couldn't deny a handshake. The two firmly grabbed one another's hand and quickly removed them. "Likewise."

Looking over the crew again had brought back a wormhole of memories. "All these years and you chumps are still fighting together, huh?"

"Yea, we're not quitters like you," Toma joked.

"Oh, please...I'm retired, you're active, and yet the King would still rather contact me for a special mission."

The others chuckled.

"So what planet ya got for us now?" Stepping up to Taro, Selypa looked over the thick and heavy book he had hardly clinched. "Something nice, I hope."

Taro gave her a lecherous grin. "I have something else nice for ya if you're down."

Selypa swiftly turned around with her head back laughing like a mad woman. For the longest Taro had been sweet on her but she'd never give the man any time of day. "No wonder you don't have any kids! Hahahahahaa!"

Taro just opened the book as he rolled his eyes. Flipping to a specific page, he skimmed over various words with his index finger until he felt that he had found the perfect mission for the crew.

"Anyway, the Planet Kanassa would be the perfect mission for you all to jump right at."

"Ha," Bardock scoffed. Already uninterested, the scarred Saiyan took a seat back down at the table. "Coming to a group of low-class warriors with a world like that? Anybody who accepts has a death wish."

"Looks like I'm going to die then," Toma said as he rose up from his seat. Walking over to his older brother, he jacked the book from him and read over data regarding the Planet Kanassa. "Atmosphere: Breathable. So we won't need any oxygen masks. Next full moon is in 6 weeks. Estimated arrival...996 hours. This is perfect for us!"

"Did you even bother reading over their estimated power-level?" Selypa asked him.

"They're estimated to be anywhere from one hundred to 1,000," Taro told her. "They're not said to be very strong so it shouldn't be much of a problem."

"If it's not much of a problem then how come you haven't done the mission when it was first placed in to be conquered over 3 years ago?" Toma asked him. "Y'know...when you weren't retired."

"Three years ago!?" Leek asked. "You're saying that this mission has been in the pool for this long? How come nobody's taken it? They're not even that strong."

"I never took it because the people there were too weak to even let me have any fun," Taro answered. "I don't know about everyone else, though. Even the King has been avoiding this mission, so there might be more to it than meets the eye."

"Rumor has it that these beings have mystical abilities that allow them to foresee the future," Bardock informed everyone. "There were a few mid-class Saiyan soldiers who tried to wipe it out but couldn't. The fact that they're able to see the future before us is in itself a handicap. They have time to plan and even make contingency plans if need be. All we have is power and they have what could be pretty much called a cheat. No matter how strong a Saiyan is, nobody is going to be able to stand up to that."

"Not even the Ginyu Force?" Totapo chimed in, very interested in this current topic.

"Not even them," Bardock answered. "Not the Ginyu Force, Abo and Cado, or any other of Freeza's top men. Freeza sent in many men and none ever came out. Who's to say that we do if we decide to go there?"

"Ahahaha," Toma laughed out loud. "For someone who is willing to take risks, you sure do seem quite scared."

Bardock knew exactly what Toma was doing and he didn't like it. "I never said that I wasn't going to take the mission, but our chances of survival are next to null. If any of you are going, then you can expect me to be by your side—that's a damn promise."

"Then we're in this together," Leek said. Out of all his comrades, he was the most concerned but he wasn't one to leave his comrades behind as well. Though none would verbally admit it, they had a bond with one another due to their constant battles. If a Saiyan could ever bond in one way, it'd be in the midst of combat.

Selypa was a fearless woman and didn't even think about the true dangers behind this. Anything that made Bardock or the others worried was the very same world she wished to take over. "With our friendly Saibaimen, we should be able to distract them quite well."

"Not like they won't see it coming…" Bardock mumbled under his breath.

Toma has gone all his life wishing to be more than just some other low-class warrior. To take the chance of succeeding and more than likely being promoted was worth dying for in his eyes. And who better to take this mission on with than the comrades he can pretty much call family?

"Well, I can't leave any of you out in the dust, can I?" Taro asked.

"Aren't you retired?" Selypa asked him.

"Yes, he is," Toma confirmed, "so he isn't joining us."

"And who are you to say what I can and can't do?" Taro asked, chuckling loudly. "If all of you are going to go out and die, then the whole team needs to be back together." He then rubbed his chin. "I would say bring Gine too but...that wouldn't turn out well."

"She's definitely not coming," Bardock affirmed. For one, she was too weak to take on people with powers that could range up to one thousand. Not only that, but she was a clumsy fighter and got herself in far too many messed up predicaments. She'd be a liability on that mission, despite the fact that they could have all the people they can get.

"Everyone be sure to get your rations since we're gonna be gone a while. I'll go ahead and tell Gine bye before I make my leave." He shot off into the sky.

* * *

"Good, good job, Kakarot." Not even one entire day of practice for the young Kakarot and he was doing a rather efficient job when it came to chopping up the goods. If there was one thing that was obvious about her son, was that he was a quick learner. Kakarot was abnormally quick to learn-even for a Saiyan.

"Hey, Gine," Bardock said, entering the room. Both Gine and Kakarot turned around, placing their attention on the male. "You got any rations for me to bring on another mission?"

"You're about to head out already?" she asked. Given how long Bardock had been gone recently, she hoped that he'd at least have the will to stay on Planet Vegeta for a while longerVas boring as it may be staying home.

"Yes," Bardock told Gine.

Recognizing that Bardock's facial expression had been as stiff as ever, she could feel that something was the matter. "What's eating at your mind, Bardock?" The Saiyan remained quiet, seemingly ignoring her as he headed into one room for a split second. Coming back out, the Saiyan could be seen slapping on red wrist bands. "You're not just going to act like I'm not even here, are you?"

"No...I've just been thinking." Slowly motioning his eyes up from the floor and to Gine, he let his own inherent worry be known through how he bit the inside of his lip. Kakarot stood there, aware something was in the air, though incognizant of what exactly.

"About?" she prodded on.

"This mission. It might be my last."

"What? You're going to retire? Already?" Just as Bardock said that, the notion of him dying didn't even occur to her. No matter what, Bardock always made sure to come back from an assigned mission.

"No. What I mean is that chances are, I'm dead there."

Gine froze.

_He doesn't mean that._

_Does he?_

As a way to comfort her, Bardock rested his hands onto her shoulders. "But best be assured I'm not going down without a fight."

She gulped down hard. "R-Right." The very thought of Bardock dying was far too hard for her to handle. In order to hide the tears, she turned around and quickly grabbed an empty bag and a few chunks of meat as well as a smaller bag and large cups of water.

Bardock could see right through it and knew that she was crying. Never before did he meet any other of his kind that was as sensitive as Gine. It was pathetic and even still, he didn't enjoy seeing her upset.

_I should have kept my damn mouth shut._

"Stop cwying," Kakarot blurted out, talking specifically to his mother.

This made Gine start laughing. "Look at you, the cry baby...telling me not to cry."

"Hehe," Kakarot grinned.

Grabbing his bags, Bardock was finally set to go. Before he could turn around and make his leave, Gine grabbed the Saiyan from behind and held tight. He could feel the literal breath being pushed out of him but the discomfort was a realization of how much she really cared for him.

Under any other circumstance, Bardock would push her away but he was sympathetic for her.

"You better come back, ya hear me?"

For the moment, Bardock and Gine's tail wrapped around one another's as a nonverbal way to say  _I love you._

Knowing he couldn't stay too long as his team was probably ready for him, Bardock softly pulled away. "See you later, Gine."

Watching as he walked away, not once did he look back.

"See ya later."


	3. World Vegeta

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raditz is disappointed by Kakarot as Prince Vegeta is disappointed with his current dilemma, in which is promised to be remedied by a special mission and special training. The President of Kanassa orders preparation...

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 3**

**"World Vegeta"**

To many, having the chance to look at various different pleasing planets while traversing through the vacuum of space would be a novelty—something marvelous to behold the eyes upon. The natural beauty of many worlds are unrivaled but they are of no exception to being taken for granted. Once seeing so many become familiar to the person, then it's just looked at as another casual object apart of life and not something special.

Saiyans were normally very used to this—starting specifically from childhood. Just looking out into space through the windows in their ships as they hopped from planet to planet was perhaps the most lifeless and uneventful part of their job as combatants. Quite like a field trip; one would be excited for the unexplored destination but when the time comes to head back home, the excitement that was once there immediately drops.

This was how the young Saiyan Raditz felt on the way back home after completing his first mission as a soldier. Sure, the kid appreciated seeing his mother and father whenever he could, but being at home grew bland, despite being so young. Continuously winning over weaker kids his around age on Planet Vegeta became laborious. Prior to becoming an official combatant, fighting off world was all that he dreamed about. Now that he was actually on the frontlines, the kid wanted nothing more but to stay off world and fight. He was loving battle just as much as the next Saiyan and he had no shame in seeing through with the evil deeds that came with it. In fact, he took pleasure in taking lives.

His only other comrade the same age as him, Prince Vegeta sat next to him in their white colored duo ship and let out a sigh of aggravation. Vegeta made his disappointment be known non-verbally before letting his frustrations out by remarking on their most recent assignment.

"That mission was an absolute waste. The only fun I got from them were their screams. Other than that, I didn't even come to get a decent warm up from those pests—just a couple scratches."

Unlike most sentient children, the Prince didn't lack common sense. He realized that as he continued to grow in power, his missions would naturally become easier to address. And even while knowing this for a fact, he at the very least desired to have some decent exercitation before ultimately crushing and degrading his victims. The easy work made it no fun at all.

After hearing Vegeta's comment on how ridiculously mundane their mission was for him, Raditz chuckled. As for Raditz's personal experience dealing with those people, it wasn't as easy considering the fact that his left arm was sprained as a result—something that had gone unnoticed by his comrades. Though in an effort to live up to Vegeta's spirit, Raditz agreed. "Right. You should ask the King to have us assigned the best missions he's got. They weren't even worth the entertainment." Even though this was his first ever venture as a Saiyan combatant, he was speaking as if he had been doing this for years.

"He already is," Vegeta replied, rolling his eyes. Mushing his right cheek with his hand as he leaned on his arm chair, he closed his eyes. "I just hope my father has something better for me the next go round, otherwise I'm just going to look forward to watching you and the others deal with weaklings."

"Right."

While Vegeta quietly drifted off to sleep just as the other two did behind them, Raditz remained with his eyes peeled. It had been a few months since he last interacted with his own father. He already realized the chances of him and his father being home at the same time were all less likely now given the fact that both were to now spend a great amount of their time off world. It now seemed that all he got to look forward to was a nice welcoming from his mother.

* * *

Hours pass and morning time had made its presence known on Planet Vegeta. At times the sun itself would force an individual to wake up from their slumber, just because of the heat finding its way inside the homes of those that remained on the planet.

" **WAHHH! WAHHH!"**

Gine's eyes shot open as if she had just witnessed the worse nightmare in her life. Althoguh her son's cries was the very thing that happened to wake her up, a nightmare of Bardock and Kakarot screaming in unison had nearly gave the woman a panic attack. Glancing over to the other side of where she slept, she laid her eyes on a near-perfectly sheeted bed—an indication of Bardock's absence.

 _Still not_  here.

Any mission could take just a few weeks to a few months. So far it had been 4 weeks since Bardock left and the more that time passed, the more she grew concerned. Kakarot's crying didn't come to a stop so Gine had to snap out of her thoughts and attend to him. For the life of her she wondered why her son wasn't in the bed, resting his head on her as he usually pleased. Looking across in her bedroom, she came to see her wooden door wide open. It didn't take long for Gine to realize just what the young child could be doing.

"Crap!"

Quicker than the eye could see, Gine dashed from the bedroom and into the kitchen of her house, which was where all her work tools were placed. She wasn't as worried for the equipment utilized for work as she was regarding the chopped slabs of meat that dangled from metal hooks affixed to her rocky, sturdy walls.

Imagine her disappointment upon finding her surprise when she came to see Kakarot was crying and throwing a fuss because he didn't have any more food to eat. Knives, spoons, forks and bones were scattered all over the floor and Kakarot just jumped up and down with hot, red cheeks that expressed great frustration. The little boy had already ate a shit ton yet here he was, wanting more.

Kakarot was a headache. Whenever the kid went unsupervised, he began to act rambunctious and boneheaded, as if he had no proper training.

Gine stood there with her hands on her hips and an obvious look of impatience. Jumping up and down after causing a ruckus, Kakarot didn't become cognizant of his mother's presence because of the fact that he focused on crying out loud far too much.

As soon as he opened his eyes and saw her, the tears dried up and Kakarot's foot remained planted onto the floor—as still as a statue he was.

"Clean this mess up or you don't get to eat at all for the rest of the day," Gine said calmly with a stern tone.

Remaining still with a blank face for a couple of seconds, Kakarot just continued to stare at his mother as if he didn't even understand a single word she said. Though the kid's level of speaking wasn't all too advanced yet, his comprehension was perfectly fine as showcased to Gine dozens of times whenever she taught him how to work like her. With her son still being unresponsive, all Gine needed to do following this was wag her tail quick and hard from side to side to get her 3 year old to get down and start picking up the mess he made.

That was an obvious sign that if he didn't listen, he'd be punished by having his tail squeezed or perhaps even tugged. No Saiyan loved this feeling and Kakarot would rather be responsible instead of having to go through that.

Smiling, all proud of her maternal skills, Gine no longer concerned herself with her boy being out of control and headed for outside where she expected her meat delivery to work on for the day.

The people to get up earliest around these times were the younger Saiyans, who were either being awakened to be trained or to work under someone else's guidance. She easily recognized the Saiyan children that walked around as she saw their faces every day.

"Ay, yo!"

Though she didn't need to see Raditz's face to recognize him. That same cut-throat voice he got from his father was all too discernible. Far too many weeks had passed since she last seen her son. While aware that he was very capable as a warrior, she couldn't help but worry over time. She truly wasn't the typical Saiyan woman.

Gine didn't hesitate and ran up to her boy, picking him up off his feet. "Raditz!" she exclaimed excitedly. "How ya been, huh?"

Raditz quickly got red and squinted his face as he tensed up, showing no shame in expressing his discomfort.

"Mom, stop that! I'm a warrior, not some damn baby!"

Gine scoffed and obliged her son by putting him back down onto his feet. "Oh so just because you're working with Prince Vegeta, you're some hot shot now, huh?"

Raditz crossed his arms and grinned at her. "That's right." Embarrassed one second and smug the next, Raditz was quick to change his attitude in a heart-beat. She had no idea where he got it from but his pride was definitely rooted from his father and it'd most undoubtedly come to be perpetuated by Prince Vegeta. Ready to get back home, Raditz began walking toward his house.

"So? How was it?" Gine asked, referring to her boy's first mission.

"Easy," Raditz answered. "Way too easy. Those weaklings didn't stand a chance against me and the others."

While walking back home side by side, Gine subtly scrutinized Raditz's appearance. Looking over some of the damage done to his armor as well as the scratches that were all over his body, she eventually came to notice his left arm. Upon seeing the sizes of Raditz's right and left arm being slightly different, she realized that the latter was swollen.

Grabbing him by the wrist, she brought Raditz to an unexpected halt. Seeing that Gine was looking over his sprained arm, the boy scoffed and pulled it back. "It's nothing."

"Doesn't seem like it to me," Gine responded. She knew that a sprained arm was nothing for a Saiyan but this showed that the mission wasn't as easy for Raditz as he made it seem. Why did some people have to hide such simple and minute things? Just to keep their pride intact? Raditz still completed the mission so he shouldn't have needed to feel any shame about a sprained arm that'd heal in no time.

Quickly changing the topic, he brought up his brother. "Is Kakarot off world or is he still in that capsule?" It was pitiful enough to him that Kakarot was at home in an incubator for so long. Raditz believed he should have been off world by now completing a frontier mission so if his brother was still home in a nursing capsuple, then that'd merely reinforce his initial belief of his younger brother being pathetic.

"Go look for yourself." Out of the corner of her eye, Gine saw a Saiyan rolling a basket full of freshly cooked meat in buckets. Seeing that was her cue to retrieve the delivery, she turned around to make sure she got her needed daily supply, leaving Raditz to enter his house.

_Go look for myself? Does that mean Kakarot's still here?_

If that meant that his brother was still here inside that capsule, then Raditz would just feel better off not even interacting with his brother. To be a son of Bardock and be no fighter was just ridiculous in his eyes. Once he took one little turn, Raditz had entered his home. The first thing he saw upon entering the kitchen was Kakarot standing on top of a chair, hanging up all the knives that he had thrashed onto the floor just moments earlier.

_So he is here._

Much to his surprise, Kakarot was home, yet not inside the incubation capsule. For his brother to be outside that nursing tank and not sent off must have surely meant that his brother was a late bloomer—that he'd be raised as a combatant due to his high potential as a Saiyan warrior.

Oh how wrong he was.

"Looks like I won't have a pathetic excuse for a brother after all," Raditz said loudly, making his presence known.

Once he hung up the last knife, Kakarot turned his head. After laying eyes on his older brother for the first time in a while, he giggled, which was a definite sign that he remembered his older brother. "Waditz." Despite most of his time being spent sleeping inside the nursing capsule, there were times in which Gine would momentarily bring her son out so that he could become familiar with her and those around him. All the while never seeing his brother and father together at the same time, Kakarot knew precisely who was who. The younger of the two hopped onto the counter and just sat there, staring at Raditz.

"It's Raditz," he corrected as he sat down on a chair in the corner of the house. To him it was a good sign for his brother to be outside the tank and not off world, as that gave him the impression that his younger brother was to become a combatant, though it didn't make sense as to why Kakarot wasn't currently being trained to fight.

"Alright, back." Gine entered the house with an armful of bagged meat. "Get off the counter, Kakarot." Once he did as told, Gine put the bags on the counter. "Now take them out and get to cutting."

"Kay." The little boy went over to grab the chair he used to set the knives back up so he could be at the proper height to take the food out and cut them.

"And don't eat the food, either," she added, having not forgotten about this morning's incident.

"How come Kakarot isn't training?" Raditz asked. Not able to get that question out of his mind, he felt like he needed to know, for this was far too much out of the usual.

"Kakarot will be staying here with me, working for the meat distribution center, too," Gine told him.

That was definitely not what he expected.

"...You're joking, right?"

"No. Kakarot is far too weak to go out there as an infiltration child and chances are, he wouldn't survive. I didn't want to take that risk so I requested that he stay here with me as a worker, where he is sure to do an efficient job."

Raditz abruptly removed himself from the chair he sat in, obviously displeased at his mother's words. "You're telling me Kakarot is just going to be a lower-class working Saiyan, who'll never taste the world of combat?"

"Do you have a problem with that?" Gine asked, her tone deliberately lowered.

Raditz knew that Gine was getting serious but he didn't care. The young Saiyan child still had his own beliefs and he stuck by it. "Of course I do! He's my brother; Bardock's son! He should be a first-rate warrior in preparation for the frontlines like I was, not some Saiyan who'll cower in the line of combat. Mother, don't you understand that there are standards? A Saiyan should at least battle before the decision is made for them to be put to work or not.  **EVEN YOU FOUGHT**  at one point."

"It's different now," Gine told Raditz. "He takes after me more than anything and you already know the stories of how much of a liability I was on the battlefield. If Kakarot gets put in the same position, I'm afraid he won't have any companions as compassionate as your father was with me and his comrades."

Raditz ignored her words and turned on his scouter. If Kakarot was this pathetic, then just how weak was he really? He couldn't have had a power-level any higher than 10.

**PIPIPIPIPIPIPIPI**

Just after a couple seconds of beeping and Raditz got a result reading of five. Turning it off, Raditz just decided to leave. His stomach felt sick at the fact that he was in the presence of such a weakling. Not even 2 minutes of being back home and Raditz was tired of being in the house. "Where's father?" There weren't any current available missions, so he had to do something to occupy himself. If Bardock wasn't anywhere around, then Raditz figured hunting animals on the outskirts of Planet Vegeta and turning them in for small rewards would be the perfect pass time until he was called in for his next conquest.

"He left again before you came back," Gine told him. Of course, she made sure to keep any other details regarding Bardock to herself. Raditz could act proud and mighty all he wanted, but she knew that he definitely looked up to Bardock. She didn't want to worry him so saying less than necessary was perfectly sufficient.

"Surprise surprise…" Raditz sarcastically commented. Not sharing another word with his mother or brother, Raditz left the house and took off.

Once Raditz was gone, Kakarot stopped chopping and looked over to Gine. "Ma," he called for her.

"Hm?"

The little boy had great understanding and could even feel that his big brother had some animosity toward him. "Why don't Waditz like me?" While young, Kakarot wasn't aware of the great importance that his fellow Saiyan peers saw in strength. He didn't realize that it was looked at as something special—something that warranted respect.

All she could do was give a soft smile, which would be taken more as a frown than anything. She couldn't even answer him.

"Just keep working," she told him. "I'll check up on you in a bit, okay?"

Kakarot just watched as Gine walked toward her bedroom, obviously upset. This just made him feel even more uncomfortable. "Okay..."

* * *

Whenever Prince Vegeta bypassed any other Saiyan as he walked, he was typically treated with a bow of the head out of respect, which of course, was obligatory. Though only 8, he was used to this and didn't even think of his inferiors as anything else than pawns that his father used—the same pawns he'd have total access to when he becomes King.

Walking through dark hallways that like the throne room, had stained glass windows, Prince Vegeta had his mind on one thing and one thing only: his rule as a King. Though it'd be a long time until that were to happen, this was all the Prince ever looked forward to. To be King would to have the ultimate position in Saiyan society and as a result, he'd be the most respected. He already had enough special treatment as of his current position but the young prince had an insatiable desire for more.

"What's on your mind, Prince?" Nappa asked as he walked alongside Vegeta. While not the sharpest knife in the kitchen drawer, Nappa has spent enough time with the royal Saiyan that he could tell whether something was on his mind of not. Granted, something was always on Vegeta's mind but Nappa was quick to pick up when Vegeta was more silent than usual.

Their three other comrades had split as soon as they arrived back, but Nappa for some reason, typically stayed by Vegeta's side. Didn't he have anything better to do? Vegeta was usually annoyed by Nappa at times, especially when he preferred to be alone. However, he never outright disrespected Nappa given the fact that King Vegeta greatly admired him for his insane tenacity as a warrior on the battle-field. Prince Vegeta, out of respect for his father, felt obligated to respecting Nappa to some degree. Hell, Nappa was even promised that if he kept up the hard work, he'd be promoted to mid-class status. As soon as Nappa gets promoted, then the balding beast would be out of his hair. All he had to do for the moment was tolerate him until that time came.

"A lot," Vegeta answered Nappa. The many great questions and fantasies Vegeta had going through his head were things he never bothered opening up to anybody because to open up was a sign of weakness in his eyes. The young boy was far too proud to let known anything he felt to be vulnerable in his mind, so he figured that he'd be able to handle everything himself without seeming like a whiny brat. "Did father request that you walk me back to our dining room?"

"No."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "I don't need a babysitter, Nappa." Stopping just yards before the entrance of the royal dining room, Prince Vegeta looked up at the humongous man. "Go out and get some rest while you can. I can assure you that on our next trip we'll be gone for a while and you'll need all the strength you can muster."

Vegeta's words instantly inspired Nappa to get back home and rest up as told. The only thing on this Saiyan's mind was food and battle, but mostly battle. The idea of a destruction and calamity is what Nappa lived for and if their next ventures were to be challenging, then he was all for it. "You can bet on that, Prince." Before making his leave, Nappa bowed to Vegeta.

Finally being left from the aggravation, he let out a sigh of relief. "What a nuisance," Vegeta mumbled under his breath as he pressed his hand against the dining room door. From the moment he entered, Prince Vegeta was hit by a mixture of various different yet enticing aromata that emanated from the countless freshly cooked meals and baked treats that were meticulously arranged on the dining table.

The dining room's atmosphere was synonymous to that of the throne room, which was quite dark apart from certain pretty light brought in through stained glass windows. For some reason, the King really loved those types of glass. To him, they signifed divinity and nobility. Asides from that, to add to his decorative style, they had a nice and bright silver chandelier placed directly above the dining table made of mahogany.

King Vegeta sat on one side of the dining room as ten other chairs were filled with his mid-class Saiyan warriors. Their food consisted of all various sweets, meat and exotic drinks. Some were colorful looking and shaped oddly, though all appeared delectable nonetheless. As always the royal Saiyan's butler, Ail, always came through with the finest fragrances that'd compell anybody (Saiyan or not) to eat, however all of the great food had remained untouched since King Vegeta wished to wait for his son's arrival before anybody got to digging in.

King Vegeta admired food and combat just as much as the next Saiyan, though he admired his son just as much. Pride as a father couldn't be hidden, nor could his smile as he was now in the presence of his first born.

"Welcome back, my boy." All of the other Saiyans removed themselves from their seats and bowed to their prince, patiently waiting until he seated himself. Before taking his first few steps while in the room, King Vegeta had snapped his fingers. As soon as the noise had been made, a tailess Saiyan with a ripped shirt exposing a multitude of welts and scars came running like his life depended on it. Just seconds before Prince Vegeta made it to his seat, the Saiyan pulled out the seat and got on all fours just under the table for the prince to place his feet upon his back. Subsequent to making it to his designated table, the other Saiyans sat back down.

"I take it your assignment went well," King Vegeta spoke. "Ail will be giving you your earned profit whenever you next leave the castle."

Given that this area is extremely sensitive to echoes, those who entered the dining room were naturally conditioned to speak at a lower tone compared to their casual outside public voices. And even still, the King's voice was so deep that anything he said or mumbled could still be very well heard.

"Too well," Prince Vegeta replied as he took a bite of the very first thing he saw. Once he took his very first bite, most of the other Saiyans started to dig in as well.

Catching how his son worded 'Too well', the King realized there was something more to it. He knew how his son operated for the most part, as they were far too similar. "What is it exactly the matter with this mission being absolutely successful?"

"Too easy for me," Prince Vegeta replied.

"Why, yes, of course. That is a given; as your power continues to grow, the missions you take on will result in being more effortless in your part. I specifically give you the hardest missions available to test your power and you continue to come back as if they weren't much to offier. Trust me I know, for I was in your exact place once upon a time."

"I don't ask for a challenge but I at least desire to have fun when I fight. I've been battling weakling after weakling and it gets old, father. All I wish to have is a mission that's actually worthwhile."

Silence would have followed after this moment if not for the sounds of their fellow Saiyan peers eating. All weren't bothered by the abrut quietness and continued to get their grub on, save for one, who was focused on being more observant of current events rather than accomodating himself to a fine meal. King Vegeta spent his personal moment of silence thinking on how to respond to his son. If there was any one fault when it came to Prince Vegeta, it was his impatience. He himself was like that when he was younger, but he's grown as a Saiyan King. However on the other hand, King Vegeta did understand his son's current predicament. The Prince merely desired to enjoy himself as he fought while The King wished to challenge his son so that he could grow stronger. For a while, he questioned whether or not on if he should assign his son to Planet Kanassa but upon thought, that was out of the question, so he had the assignment be brought to a group of lower-class soldiers. Once they were to expectedly fail and die, he'd just officialize the mission as a success so that it could finally be out of the picture.

Regardless, the fact of the matter was that he needed his son to grow stronger at exponential rates so that he could become powerful enough to take down and dethrone Freeza. In King Vegeta's eyes, his son was their only hope so something needed to be done about it.

Once the King had his thoughts all set, he broke the verbal silence.

"I understand your dilemma, son. Despite your great potential, you too, are bound to hitting some barrier that'll need to be overcome. All Saiyans hit this limit when they're fully grown and I doubt you'll be an exception, regardless of your great strength. I, too, have been thinking about this. After countless conversations with my advisors, we've finally come to the conclusion of what it is that we want to do. This will undoubtedly help you, who'll be our first guinea pig. Explain it to him, Zorn."

Now the Prince's interest was piqued. Many more questions came over his mind but whenever his curiosity was up, Vegeta's patience was as well.

One of the King's best mid-class warriors, Zorn, went on to explain to the Prince what exactly it is that his father had been referring to. "The scientists of our world are looking for the next breakthrough when it comes to increasing one's power. Long ago, Saibaimen were genuinely useful to the entirety of the Saiyan race regarding training and combat, but nowadays you realize that their main focal role has been to assist other warriors in the midst of battle. As of right now, they're going through a process of genetic engineering when it comes to these creatures. After growing them in soil, the Saibaimen are incapacitated and used for research and experiments so that we can find a way to make them stronger so that results of training with them can be as beneficial as it once was."

"Back up," Prince Vegeta told him.

Zorn, having thought he explained everything perfectly, looked over to the King, who nodded to his son as a signal for Zorn to listen. Respecting both his Prince and King, he did as told and made sure to go over every word that was to come out of Prince Vegeta's mouth.

"You say that these things are being planted first and then researched?"

"Yes," Zorn answered. "That is correct."

Prince Vegeta scoffed. That was the problem: they had everything ass backwards. "Please remind those science fools that it's the soil that determines the strength of a Saibaimen. Instead of growing them first, tell them that they ought to try and work on making abnormal and potent soil so that the Saibaimen can come out much stronger than what we're used to. And once that's figured out, then work on how those things can be made more docile so that they're easier to control. A strong Saibaimen can be dangerous if they decide to jump at the ones who permitted them to live in the first place."

"Ah…" Zorn, a man well in his forties, was stunned at how quick and easy that the young Saiyan Prince managed to come up to this conclusion. "I...I'm speechless." Hastily getting up from his seat, Zorn figured that he ought to tell these scientists word by word what Vegeta told him for as long as he remembered. "I'm glad you've decided to speak up, Prince Vegeta. Your advice just may be the absolute solution to our current obstacle. Now if you'll excuse me." Before taking his leave, he bowed and thanked Vegeta.

King Vegeta had to recover quickly before almost choking on his water once he heard his son's response. His line of thinking regarding how they should go about their research was perfectly on par with that of that young clone's thinking.

_Kuni_

Though strength was something the King respected most out of his son, the boy's smarts was a definite bonus as well. The fact that Prince Vegeta, an eight year old child, would have come to the conclusion of a young scentific prodigy so quickly was nothing short of marvelous. And this had just reminded him of something else entirely. Abruptly removing himself from his seat, King Vegeta beckoned his son to follow.

* * *

The sounds of the boots of father and son echoed through the dark and dimly lit corridors of the King's remarkable abode. His castle, which had a multitude of add ons for different rooms of service, was even more sensitive to echoes compared to the dining room. One single word being muttered could result in someone from 20 yards behind hearing them perfectly. Casual talk wasn't the best option when it came to walking around this area so the two royal Saiyans didn't utter a single word.

Before reaching their destination, King Vegeta finally spoke up. "Had I not been thinking so much about other matters, I believe I would have been able to come up with the same conclusion that you did just moments earlier."

"I'm surprised you didn't, father. It's just common sense and I know that you have that."

"Hm. That's because I've been far too focused on this." Opening the door in front of them, father and son came to see the dozens of nursing capsules inside this one very room. "I've been questioning something lately my son and before I decided to take action, I believe some of your own input would be of great importance."

In this room, there were many scientists on the duty of observing new Saiyan children. These were the ones to decide if they were to be classified as lower-class children, low-class combatants and so forth. All kept quiet and remained doing their jobs in the presence of the King and the Prince. Here, the two needed not to worry about important matters being overheard due to the sounds of bubbling coming from the countless nursing capsules as well as the constant beeping noises from virtual screened tablets and computers that identically cloned blue haired women clicked on as a way to record data from the other scientists who scribbled notes on their paper.

Curious as to what his father was subtly speaking about, Vegeta asked: "What is it?" To him, it was just a bunch of Saiyan children that were either to be assigned infiltration missions or being raised as combatants. What could possibly be the King's thoughts regarding them?

"A lot of Saiyan children seem to not have the genuine makings of a possibly great warrior after birth. Their power is low, meaning innate potential is not all too promising. I've been believing recently that the incorrect course of sending young lower-class Saiyans to random planets with the chance of being killed off needs to be altered for now. Their chances of being found by the Galactic Patrol and or doing something idiotic to get themselves killed is more of a detriment to us than anything beneficial."

"But that's the perfect way of distinguishing the weak from the strong," Prince Vegeta reminded.

"Yes, I, and your royal ancestors have been under the same mindset as well. But for us to instead allow these weaker Saiyans here to either work or train to become combatants would be of a better choice. For one, we need not worry about members of the next generation getting killed off, thus making our army and work centers even stronger! What do you think, my son?"

Prince Vegeta rubbed his chin as he started to think over his father's words. Sure enough, having a young Saiyan be put in such situations would be telling of just how much Saiyan spirit they have but on the contrary, giving them the chance to stay on Planet Vegeta and still benefit instead of going off to die made sense as well. Prince Vegeta could understand both perspectives, albeit from an objective standpoint, he knew that King Vegeta's words made the most sense. "I can agree it's a good idea but I prefer this current system we have going on right now."

Palpating his goatee, King Vegeta further thought on this topic. He understood his son's viewpoint one hundred percent yet at the same time, even he wasn't too old for some change—even if it was temporary. "Hm...agreed. You and I both are far too used to our current method—especially myself. However my curious side has compelled me to at least change up the way of things momentarily, to see if this method could actually come to benefit us. If not, then we'll merely go back to old customs."

The Prince just shrugged his shoulders. It wasn't like he really cared anyway. At the end of the day his father was King and his word was final so the Prince really didn't have any concerns regarding his own opinion. This was precisely why he couldn't wait to be King; every word or order would be taken and without question. Walking around the nursing room, once Vegeta caught eye of a green incubator from afar, memories of a certain person had started coming back to him. The incubator was reserved solely for the future promising Saiyans. While the question was now hot in his head, he simply asked his father.

"How is Tarble's progress?"

Prince Vegeta recalled that prior to his previous leave off-world, Tarble was being trained to become a warrior. Vegeta expected his brother to be placed by his side on missions of the future but he knew that Tarble tended to hold himself back. Either his brother was still here...or off world. Last time he checked, Tarble continued to perform pitifully due to his unwillingness to battle. He hoped that things would have bettered in recent times.

"Hm? Oh." King Vegeta folded his arms. "Your brother has great latent potential, corresponent to your own, but the boy is pathetic—a pacifist to be accurate. He lacks the Saiyan pride and spirit to fight, which makes him a waste of strength. Just soon after you left with your comrades a while ago, I made the choice of sending your brother away to some remote planet where he needs not worry about battle. If he comes back right and up to royal expectations, then he should be accepted. However, if his pathetic persona carries on in the future, he has no place on this Planet."

The young prince shook his head. What an absolute shame. How could a Saiyan of Royal Blood not have any real fighting spirit? Vegeta couldn't get it. The entire notion in itself was a damn paradox to him but life was confusing like that sometimes. Brother or not, there are certain places for the weak and the strong. And as far as he was concerned, these two were in very different places. Regardless, Prince Vegeta wondered if his father purposely sent Tarble away to a remote planet for Tarble's safety or just to merely get him out the picture. Tarble is still his son, so Vegeta could imagine his father did so to protect not only Tarble, but their reputation as royal Saiyans. To be seen with a pacifistic Saiyan in the royal family is damaging to rep so it was a necessary action on the King's behalf. Though disappointed, the Prince understood.

"My son." Vegeta placed his hands on the boy's shoulders. Once the king got the prince's attention, he continued to speak. "I can feel the eagerness within you when it comes to facing these enhanced Saibaimen. But while we work on that, I've managed to find a mission in which you'll be bound to truly test your power. The inhabitants there are extremely potent and will require all of your focus. Walk with me and I'll inform you on all the prerquisite details."

Barely able to hold his excitement, Prince Vegeta wished for his father to speak on. "Please...do tell."

* * *

 

To have the capabilities of foreseeing the future is more of a curse than it is a blessing. Those with these abilities were the Kanassans, a race of people who have always been honorable optimists at heart. Despite the pain and spoiling moments that came with these visions, they always did their best to see the good in it, so that their people could thrive. Using their cursed visions to their advantage was just how the established sires of the past were able to build such a successful civilization—as mundane as it was.

The leader of Planet Kanassa, like his citizens, had the features of a dark blue scaly skin with their face and front body being the exception for said features. It was light and smooth and their eyes were narrow and menacing, though despite their intimidating appearance, they were all pure-hearted individuals, as they placed great importance on honor and integrity for the commonwealth. Crime was  **VERY** rare and all tended to get along quite well.

Inside a bright purple room surrounded by gigantic tanks filled with water, the leader of Planet Kanassa was alone in a room, face to face with the commander-in-chief of the Kanassan army.

Many weren't natural fighters, so their armies were very small in number—there being only a couple dozen soldiers short of one hundred total. Like their citizens, the soldiers could also foresee the future, but they were merely blessed with seeing future events in split moments. On the other hand, the commander-in-chief of the army was capable of seeing how their intruders were to make their arrival known and they saw how things would thoroughly turn out—it wasn't good.

"Our citizens grow concerned over these weird visions they continue to have and they are demanding answers. Intuition of ominous days ahead are being sensed and I want to make sure that my people are safe."

"And what about their sense of security?"

_Sense of security? Seriously?_

"With all due respect, Thon, I don't care if my people need to feel safe or not. What I care for is them actually being safe—period. Tomorrow morning, you'll let them know the truth and send in the order for everyone to be sent to vaults so that they are not caught in the midst of the hell that will come. Upon that, make sure our men are well prepared and that a plan is set in place. in cases like these, make sure our soldiers show  **NO** mercy. Do you understand?"

Thon nodded his head, getting the point perfectly. "I'll be sure to set up everything as you wish, sir. On my dignity, I promise that we won't lose."

"Of course, Thon. You never disappoint."

With their conversation finished, Thon began his exit from the room. He was to head home to his family and rest one last time before setting their defensive scheme into motion. Just after opening and closing the door behind him, Thon closed his eyes as he walked the bright hallways of the President's building. All he could see was death and destruction.

Still, if he were to revisit these visions over and over, then he would most definitely be able to devise a preventive strategy—one that'd gurantee triumph.


	4. The Zoon Assignment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freeza has a special subjugation task that he intends to have come bite the Saiyans in the future. After carrying out the mission, Prince Vegeta comes to a certain realization.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 4**

**"The Zoon Assignment"**

* * *

Over the countless worlds that had been conquered under the name of King Cold and Freeza, both father and son had managed to accumulate well over a hundred owned planets thanks to their business. Some even believed there to be thousands of them but these two tended to be very secretive so any unofficial talk being spread about them had merely been deduced to being rumors.

Cold, now that he was retired, didn't have to be at the center of attention when it came to administration. Just a few years ago, he made the decision of sitting back in the shadows and being a spectator as Freeza ran the show. He never made any moves unless his son came to him, requesting help or advice, though that was rare. When the two talked, it was almost always about their organization and the people working for them.

"I see you made the decision of not ridding of those Saiyans despite the talk of a  _Super Saiyan_ possibly being born amongst them."

Freeza and Cold were in a room that smelled like exotic wine and various sweet fragrances which was illuminated by red neon lights. The common subordinate didn't even remotely have the chance to be around these two whenever they talked, save for Kikono and Beriblu: their most trusted consultants.

In response to his father's words, Freeza merely scoffed, brushing off the talk of the myth. "From my understanding, these Saiyans are absolutely insignificant to me in comparison. Besides, they won't be with us for long anyhow."

"Hm?" King Cold found that perplexing. His son held off on destroying the Saiyan race just to do so another time? If his son's intentions were to do away with them then why not do it now rather than later? Cold knew his son better than any other; nine times out of ten, Freeza would rather be safe than sorry. "Why not do it right away instead of waiting? By giving them more time, you're merely giving the Saiyans an opportunity for an opponent worthy to step up to you."

Freeza just chuckled.

_Right, I forgot to explain._

"To preface this, papa, I'm one hundred percent aware of the fact that these Saiyans will never be able to rise up to a power even slightly synonymous to my own, so that is not the issue. The thing is, these Saiyans are a prideful race. No matter what they will not remain loyal to me and it's only a matter of time before they decide to revolt. It matters not what they do because they still won't win but there could be collateral damage done once they decide to come against me. With that said, King Vegeta has recently come across a growing race of people on a world called Zoon orbiting the outskirts of the same star that Planet Vegeta resides."

"Mhm."

"After Vegeta's scouts did some observations revolving this world, the planet is no longer deemed untenated. They, in fact, are a people that live on a planet with gravity equal to Planet Vegeta. I thank the heavens that he did indeed go to look back over that planet because I had long forgotten about that dump of a world. They're not an innate warrior race but with that advantage of having such a high gravity, they can be trained to become one much like the Saiyans are. They're very small in number, so once under me, I can have them grow into a true civilization. Once they've managed to populate themselves to over a few thousand, I'll substitute the Saiyans with them. I'll still have capable warriors able to do profitable jobs and I'll no longer have to worry about the potential trouble coming from these Saiyans." Freeza recalled Kikono's point on the Saiyans making up around 50% of their entire army, so if he were to replace them with the Zoon people at the perfect time, then he wouldn't have to concern himself with a drop in soliders at all. Everything could remain the same statistically.

Having thoroughly listened to Freeza's explanation, Cold immediately came to comprehend precisely what his son's intentions were. And he had to admit, this was smart on Freeza's part. Not only that, but the patience he was willing to have behind this agenda was unusual yet also commendable. "Do you have any men on the job to have them subjugated?"

"I've already ordered Vegeta to have his best men go over to that barren world. I made sure that he understood I want very little deaths as possible. Their main goal is to coerce them into agreement in being a service to me and the Freeza Force. They must do so, for he knows I am not taking no for an answer, otherwise the mission will be considered a failure."

King Cold just grinned. "Good, but I hope you know that it will take a while for these people to produce to a certain standard as they're being given missions to constantly work for. It'll be a while before their number of people matches that of the Saiyans even."

"Yes, I'm aware, but don't fret. I intend on being in this for the long haul."

* * *

Despite the insane appetite that a Saiyan typically held, food was rarely ever scarce on Planet Vegeta. There were authorized hunting grounds in which Saiyans needed permission to enter so that they could turn it into the meat distribution center. Raditz, being Gine's son, sometimes hunted so that he could turn it in for a small reward or bring his mother extra food to prepare.

After having killed one targeted animal, the others had all scattered in a hurry. A 20 foot ostrich looking creature, all black with fangs lied lifeless in a green, grassy field. Raditz hovered over the thing and smiled proudly at how he managed to easily get a kill from afar. This was just as easy as putting on clothes for him now.

This area was one of the few zones in which Raditz spent his days training to eventually become a combatant. With a mere reminiscence of the time spent here in the past, Raditz thought of how far he was becoming. Already a combatant at the young age of eight, he was partnered with Prince Vegeta. To fight alongside him and other great warriors was a compliment to Raditz and he had been given the impression that he, too, was going to become one of the strongest Saiyans to ever fight.

But for the life of him, he just couldn't grasp how he could even be related to Kakarot, a mere weakling. As far as he was concerned, Prince Vegeta was like a brother to him—a role he believed Kakarot wouldn't grow to fit.

_PIPIP_

"Raditz, come in."

Hearing Nappa over the scouter, Raditz quickly answered back. "Yo."

"Prince Vegeta just contacted me and let me know we got our awards in our ships. We also are set to head to another mission."

"Already, huh?"

"Yeah. The Prince told me to go and rest but by the time I had got home, he ordered me to be ready to go."

"Haha. Looks like you'll just be getting your rest on the way there. This an ordinary mission or do we have special orders?"

"We have been told to keep killing at a minimum. If we must, we kill the strong so that we can easily subdue the weak. Our job is to have the people fall to their knees to us before Lord Freeza gets there to place them under servitude. These are orders from the King himself. We'll be there in 312 hours once we head out."

"Gotcha. I'll be there in a sec."

"Alright, see ya." Nappa cut the call.

Not wasting any time, Raditz picked up the dead animal and shot off into the skies of Planet Vegeta. As he flew, Raditz began to wonder about this new assigned world; only his second mission and he's ordered to not kill them? If Freeza believed that they could be of service to the Freeza Force, then it must have meant that they were truly strong.

_No problem._

Not even two minutes of flight and Raditz had managed to make back to the village in which his mother was in no time. Touching down right before his home, he entered the house, expecting to see his mother right at the counter where she usually was.

Much to his surprise, Gine wasn't even in the house. Instead of her chopping the meat, Kakarot and some random, pudgy Saiyan woman were preparing the rations. Raditz rolled his eyes at the sight of Kakarot but he approached the little boy anyway.

The little boy was so focused on managing the food that he hadn't felt the looming presence of his older brother.

Kakarot's eyes widened in shock once a giant dead animal was slammed right on the table before him. He had stopped cutting and looked over to whom it was that startled him.

"Gut this and do whatever it is the hell you do. Whenever mother gets back, let her know that I'm out on another assignment." Raditz made sure to keep it brief, then turned around to make his leave. Just before he stepped one foot outside of the house, Kakarot had called his name. He took a deep breath but he still stopped. He wondered what he could want.

"Raditz." The young boy hopped off the counter and approached his older brother with the animal he had brought to him. He figured that in being nice to him, then Raditz would be more considerate. "We have 'nough already. This for you!"

"You really think that's going to fill me up?" Raditz kicked Kakarot away with the heel of his boot. The little brother was sent off his feet and crashed into one of the chairs in the room. The woman who had witnessed showed her shock by dropping the butcher knife she used to cut with. "Weakling. You probably wouldn't be able to hunt an animal yourself so you're better off with a freebie." Saying no more, he took off.

Kakarot was left on the floor, absolutely stunned. He was trying to be nice and this was the treatment he got? All because he was considered weak? Instead of crying, the boy quickly got back up on his feet and ran out the house. Looking up in the sky, he had only caught a small glimpse of Raditz before he was out of sight. Even still, the young boy sneered, obviously angry.

"I'm not weak…" Kakarot clenched his little fists.

* * *

"We're tired of you always taking our food, PuiPui! Just because you're the strongest doesn't give you the right!"

A growing race: the inhabitants of Planet Zoon. Just a few years ago, this world was deemed vacant with no traces of intelligent life. Although recently, beings that called themselves Zoon people came to existence. Their world was a dark and rocky planet with a very tough atmosphere. Of the possible sentient creatures that could survive here, none managed to adapt properly. The gravity was strenuous on the body, which was why the Zoon people had a white bio armored exoskeleton with spikes on their backs to protect themselves from the the harsh weather, especially the dangerous hot storms that tended to pass by every few days which they needed to create burrows to protect themselves from. Their yellow pupiless eyes were even adapted to not be harmed by the world's environment. Asides from that though, the weirdest things about them were their long xenomorph shaped heads and rectangular shaped ears.

Of the few hundred Zoon people spread across the planet, PuiPui was established as the strongest. Being abnormally stronger than the rest of his fellow man, PuiPui tended to bully people out of their food and other resources. Whenever someone made a fancy burrow to sleep in, PuiPui would forcibly pull people out and sleep there, no matter the person. He fought against many daring to challenge him but he just continued to beat and rob people for their belongings. Being undefeated, he considered himself the greatest warrior in the cosmos.

Munching on an oversized juicy ten legged bug, PuiPui just laughed in their faces. "Awww, why don't you take it from me?"

The two people being picked on were younger than PuiPui, who could be considered a teenager at this point. One of the two kids came at PuiPui to reach for their food but were being toyed with. PuiPui would only hold his arm high up teasing them as they tried to reach.

"Enough!"

Both were brave enough to kick him in the shin but that didn't do anything but tickle the bully. PuiPui backhanded both of the little boys and continued to eat on their food. "How about you stand up to me when you're actually strong?" Turning around in a fit of laughter, PuiPui continued to go on about his business.

_Who else's day can I ruin? hehehehe._

There wasn't very much to do on their world asides fight and fornicate. Every single day from the day he had been born, PuiPui had been searching for all different types of entertainment. His personal best diversion was fighting since he was stronger than everyone else. He took pleasure in beating and humiliating his opponents.

"What the heck are those!?"

"Huh?"

PuiPui turned around to see what had caught the attention of the two he had just got done harassing. Through the small time that they had been on this world, PuiPui nor any other Zoon person has ever come into contact with anything remotely foreign to their world asides from meteorites. This unusual object at first glance could be mistaken for a meteorite but PuiPui knew that it was something far different.

In the sky they came eye to eye with a humongous peculiar looking object falling down from the heavens. "What in the hell?" Getting a closer look, he realized it was some type of ship.

PuiPui and the two kids had a general idea of where the ship had landed once they heard a loud crash up ahead.

The two young kids looked at one another and then back to the vicinity in which the ship landed. Both contemplated on going over there but fear of the unknown also left them conflicted, so they were indecisive about their next move.

Having a great idea, one of the Zoon children turned around and looked up to PuiPui. "Will you bring us over there? You're the only person we know that's close and that can fly."

PuiPui crossed his arms. "So? What's in it for me?"

"We'll give you anything you want for an entire month! We won't argue or fight back or anything!"

"Hey, are you stupid?" the other kid asked his friend.

PuiPui was already intrigued by the irregular occurrence, so he was going to bring them anyway. He didn't want everyone to miss out on the fun. After all, whatever was to happen, PuiPui knew that he was going to be the highlight of the show. To have as much attention as possible for the highest amount of external validation was all that he longed for.

The two kids were grabbed by the hands and lifted into the air as PuiPui ascended off the ground. "What do you two think it is?"

"Probably our creator!" one of the kids happily exclaimed.

_Our creator?_

PuiPui had to hold in a laugh at the silly guess. Not once did PuiPui think of their creator, nor did he ever care. The only thing he loved to do was fight and if he had the chance to fight whatever this thing was, then he was all for it.

The closer they got, PuiPui and the two kids came to the realization that they weren't the only people to have gotten curious. There were many others already in the area while some even arrived through the air.

Once they made it to the main location of interest, PuiPui lowered until he touched back down to make it on foot. "Now, what is going on here?"

The inhabitants of Zoon for the most part remained quiet and observant as they tried to answer mysterious questions in their own head. Nobody had yet bothered to exit this ship so they were unaware of the fact that five people were inside, watching them.

Prince Vegeta remained in his seat, as did Raditz while the three adult Saiyans all remained on their feet. They kept count of the people arriving in the area through monoscopes.

"There are over 200 of them now," Bruss informed the others.

"Good." Prince Vegeta stood up. "Let's greet our audience." The Prince was in a bad mood for the most part, since he expected to be heading toward a world where he'd be slaughtering his opponents with no trace of life left. However, from the very moment that his father told him about the main objective with this assignment, his excitement died down. Still, Vegeta hoped that someone would get froggy and try to fight him at the very least so that he could have  _some_ fun.

People had been murmuring and theorizing about this mysterious object since they all gathered around it. Some even touched on the back of the ship to get a feel for it. Even with the richest natural resources of material of Planet Zoon, making anything remotely synonymous to this thing would be a near impossibility. This was a sign as to how far behind they were as a race.

**PSHHH!**

Once the sounds of the door opened, everyone didn't make a single sound and solely kept their eyes peeled. When they saw five different people exiting the ship, gasps spread across the place. These were actual living beings!

As soon as they stepped down, the Saiyans felt as if the gravity was like a welcoming back home. Everything else about this planet compared to Planet Vegeta was absolutely different, though.

Bruss was the one to step up and speak on behalf of his comrades. "All of you are now under jurisdiction of Lord Freeza. He does not request but instead  ** _demands_**  that all of you agree to being under his rule and working for him. He will not be taking no for an answer. All of you just pledge your allegiance to Lord Freeza so that we can be on our merry way before he gets here. Nobody will have to worry about getting hurt and everyone has a great life."

"The first time we meet something different than us and this is what we get?" One of the men in the audience moved himself from the back of the crowd and made his way up to the front. "I'll have to apologize but we're saying no to this."

"As I said, Lord Freeza will not be taking no for an answer. Either all of you willingly comply or you'll happen to be taken by force."

PuiPui remained in the very back of the crowd. By slightly hovering above ground, he was able to see these newcomers very well. He felt the tension rising in the air and by now, he knew that an altercation was inevitable. Though he did want to fight them and send these people back on their merry way, PuiPui needed to know that he wasn't going to waste his time. In order for him to gain information about the potential skills of these newcomers, he needed to gauge them out by seeing them in action.

"We'd rather die then bow down to anyone!"

"That's all I needed to hear." Showing no signs of hesitation, Vegeta lifted his index finger and aimed it right at the head of the stubborn Zoon inhabitant. Not even a second later, his body had fallen right on the ground with a hole through the cranium. Blood soon started to leak out and make a pool just around its head. The sight had scared some of the others and struck terror in the hearts of many that were witnesses.

"Vegeta!" Sprout turned to him. "We need to keep deaths to a minimum!"

Vegeta just smirked. "Freeza wants as little deaths as possible but it doesn't mean that we don't get to kill. Heh. Besides, a few dead bodies won't hurt their numbers."

"How dare you!"

One of the Zoon people flew right toward Vegeta in an attempt to take him out. Before he could even get there, Bruss close lined the brave defiant. The victim didn't even see Bruss' arm being held out till the very last second. From the moment that the Saiyan's arm came into contact with his throat, he was done for. Once his body landed with a loud thud, this provoked some more to fight for their own cause.

And just like that, over half of the people there jumped right at them.

The bad mood Vegeta had been in before was now nonexistent.

Raditz blocked an incoming punch from his assailant and retaliated with an elbow to the gut. As soon as he coerced his opponent to hunch over in howling pain, Raditz headbutted him in the face and ended him by blasting him through the stomach at point blank range.

"Hahahaha!" Nappa laughed and mocked the three that had decided to attack him simultaneously. Two of the three were on his sides as the third was confronting him up and center. Bringing them all to a halt, Nappa grabbed the fists of the two on his side and took a full on punch to the face. Undeterred by the strike, Nappa just laughed in their faces before he decapitated all three of them at once.

Everyone that stood up to the Saiyans as of this moment were the same people that PuiPui had fought in the past. To see these Saiyans making quick work of those who were considered top notch fighters on Planet Zoon let PuiPui know that the intruders were very strong and would possibly even manage to challenge him! Of all the ones fighting, he quickly noticed that Raditz was the weakest link.

"Let's see here…"

By this time, he wanted to jump in and make his presence known but PuiPui was figuring out just who he wanted to face off against next.

Bruss and Sprout were handling themselves very well when it came to battle. None of the Zoon people could even remotely touch them and got dealt with easily. Nappa wasn't even breaking a sweat and neither was Vegeta.

While PuiPui did want to pick out the long-haired brat first, he didn't want to start off with such an easy kill. That wouldn't be him telling these intruders that he's someone to worry about. He needed to pick out at one or two of the bigger figures before making his easy kill justifiable.

"PuiPui, help them!" one of the women yelled out in desperation. Very rare did people call on him but when it came to moments like these, PuiPui was their best hope. He had a reputation as the best fighter on Planet Zoon and now was his time to cement that legacy of his.

"Oh, my name's been called, hehehe!"

PuiPui shot into action.

**PIPIPIPIPIPI**

Just after dealing with a handful of weaklings by reducing them to virtually nothing, Bruss and Sprout turned around after their scouters had warned them of an assailant coming from behind.

"No way!" Too stunned by PuiPui's power-level to act on his feet, Bruss didn't manage to regain his composure before he got busted in the face with a vicious kick. Sprout fired a blast toward Bruss' assailant from the moment his comrade was sent falling, but it had been deflected back to him. Due to being far too focused on protecting himself from his own swatted attack, PuiPui caught Sprout at an opening and gut-checked him as soon as said Saiyan thought he was in the clear.

Sprout's insides went shaking from the force behind PuiPui's punch. The following elbow to the face had sent him sliding across the land just immediately after. "Whoah, one moment you'reup and next thing you know...you're down."

"S-S…" Raditz's lip was quivering as he read over this man's power-level. "Six thousand…" He was so confused. How come nobody managed to catch this in the first place? Why was this person so strong?

Nappa, who had just got done slamming a body into the ground, jerked his head back up to Raditz, who was backing up with shaky legs. "What!? Six Thousand? Are you sure?" Nappa looked over to Vegeta, who was having his own fun humiliating his opponents. Instead of killing them instantly, he thoroughly enjoyed beating on them in a humiliating fashion and just watched as they came back at him to embarrass them even more.

Seeing that he was already occupied with his fun, Nappa didn't even bother. If there was one thing he learned about Vegeta, it was that he hated when people interrupted his fights.

"I'm positive, Nappa. He's even stronger than Vegeta!"

Nappa looked on as PuiPui took on both Bruss and Sprout at once and witnessed the two Saiyans being humilated since they couldn't do as much as lay a finger on him. Cocking their fists back, Bruss and Sprout hoped to connect but were only taken aback once PuiPui vanished before their eyes. Not even being given a chance to spot their opponent, they both were blasted in the back and sent crashing onto the hard rocky lands of Planet Zoon.

Hundreds of claps and cheers roared from the crowd that watched PuiPui put on a show. For the first time, there were individuals that genuinely took a liking to PuiPui, as he was preventing his people from being enslaved. It didn't matter if PuiPui did it out of the good of his heart or not, for him winning was all that mattered to them.

"Get up!" Raditz told them.

Bruss and Sprout weren't even able to move. They still had life in them but PuiPui had deliberately struck them in their spinal cord so that they were paralyzed from the waist down. It was an easy kill at this point and PuiPui was always known as the person to take advantage when the ball was in his park.

Nappa could hear the two groaning but unable to move. Unlike most Saiyan noblemen, the balding warrior had some compassion for his comrades and it became obvious from his body language that he intended on saving Bruss and Sprout to get them out of danger's way. "Stay here, Raditz. I'm going to go get the-!"

**Boom!**

PuiPui waved his finger back and forth at Nappa. "Whoopie! Shoulda got there sooner, tsk tsk tsk."

Bruss and Sprout were turned into literal ashes. Nappa did make an attempt to try and get them out of harm's way, though he wasn't able to make it in time. Two first rate warriors on the verge of being promoted had been dealt with as if they were common trash.

Nappa never had any genuine bond with Bruss or Sprout but he still took PuiPui's actions as personal insult. They were top tier men and had been discarded like they were pure opposite. "Rah!" Charging a white ball of energy in the palm of his hand, he launched it directly at him.

"Yeah, no." PuiPui hammered the energy attack back down, purposely deflecting it at Raditz, who hopped off the ground in order to avoid it in just a nick of time. The impact of the explosion from the attack knocked him off balance and had him open. PuiPui rushed in at him and punched the boy hard as he could in the cheek, almost breaking his jaw in the process. Raditz let out a painful yell as he fell sharply into the ground beneath him.

Before he could finish off the young Raditz with a blast, Nappa appeared behind PuiPui and positioned the man in a full nelson—well he tried. Nappa didn't even have the chance to get his arms under PuiPui's axilla thanks to being rendered a solid kick to the gut. Turning around, he was slapped in the face and kneed in the stomach before being blown in the back by a double axe handle.

Nappa came falling down onto his knees hard. The cracks in the ground were so huge that one would think that the very surface beneath them would utterly collapse. PuiPui didn't give him a chance to get back up and planted the bottom of his foot into Nappa's upper back, forcing the Saiyan's face into the dense rock that scratched up his face.

Raditz slowly got back up with blood leaking from his mouth and bruises all over his body. This had been the first time he ever got hit like that and boy did it sting. After managing to get himself back on his feet, Raditz watched as Nappa continuously struggled. After getting knocked down, Nappa would get back up and try to lay a finger on him. Due to missing continuously, he grew angrier, which in turn made Nappa fight slovenly. This was only repaid with him getting embarrassed more.

Sidestepping two more attacks, PuiPui uppercut Nappa and kicked him in the chest. Being put on the ground for at least the tenth time, Nappa was truly getting livid. On his feet, the red in his face made it seem like he was going to pop. The veins on his forehead gave everyone the impression that they were literally going to jump out of his body. He couldn't do anything but see red and this would only get worse for him if he continued but Nappa couldn't give a damn.

"Y-You...I'm going to kill you!"

"Nappa, calm down!" Vegeta barked.

With the Prince's voice snapping Nappa out of his phase of anger, he looked at the young prince. "Ah? Vegeta, you're finally done?"

"Obviously not." He locked eyes with PuiPui. "I still have him to deal with."

PuiPui smiled. "Little kid, tuck your tail in and leave this area. This is for the big boys."

**PIPIPIPIPI**

"6,000…" Vegeta himself stood at a mere power-level of 5,000, having recently just risen above Nappa. "Of all the many battles I've had, this is the first time I've come face to face with somebody asides a Saiyan that is stronger than me." He smiled. "You'll make a worthy kill."

"Enough talk." PuiPui hopped off his back foot. "FIGHT!"

Vegeta planted his foot fiercely into the ground and got into his battle stance. With the first punch, Vegeta used his left hand as a guard to block. His free right hand came forth at PuiPui in an attempt to punch him, though PuiPui was quick enough to duck under the strike and retaliate with an attempted punch to the gut. Vegeta was already one step ahead and rose his knee to block PuiPui's punch but had been swept by his opponent's other leg.

The young Saiyan quickly recovered his balance and pushed himself off the ground as soon as his hands made contact with it. Doing so just in time he managed to miss a kick from PuiPui but it was only a matter of time before he got hit. A knee to the chest had gotten Vegeta good and forced him to ascend up high.

Just as he was soaring up and above PuiPui, Vegeta cocked his hand back and slung forward a ball full of energy. PuiPui stepped back to dodge the attack just in time but Prince Vegeta rendered countless more, kicking up as much smoke as he possibly could.

Inside the smoke, PuiPui wasn't able to see anything at all. Unbeknownst to him, the scouters used by the Saiyans could detect where they were in combat. Subsequent to making the decision of getting into a clear area, Vegeta was on his tail. By the time PuiPui rose up from the smoke, Vegeta taunted him from behind.

"Over here."

As soon as he turned around, Vegeta rendered PuiPui an upward kick. The tip of his boot making contact with PuiPui's chin sent PuiPui flying into the air. Not giving him an ounce of breathing room, Vegeta rushed in and sent him crashing down with an axe handle to the top of the head.

PuiPui flipped over just in time to land on his feet. Seeing Vegeta coming from him, he instinctively blocked his face with his arms. Faking a punch to the nose, Prince Vegeta changed his area of attack and started to deliver a myriad of quick punches to the gut.

PuiPui rammed both of his fists into Vegeta's back so that he could bring the Saiyan's onslaught to an immediate stop. Once he did that, PuiPui mushed Vegeta in the face with his right hand and struck him with his left.

Vegeta received two more hits but he pushed himself to tolerate the pain that he endured. Although some would take it as a bad look, the blood that leaked from Vegeta's mouth was something that the Saiyan prince appreciated instead of detesting.

He was fighting someone worthy!

_Fun_

Vegeta grabbed a hold of PuiPui's hands—both of them. From then on, the two came at a struggle. As they pushed on to have an edge over the other, neither of them broke eye contact. Vegeta's bloodied lip curled up into a grin, which PuiPui found disturbing. Was he actually liking this? PuiPui was in it to win it and enjoy the victory, not the fight itself.

"Just because you're just a bit stronger doesn't mean I'm going to lose!" Hopping off his feet, Vegeta reeled in PuiPui's arms prior to stretching his feet out, which were rammed into his opponent's face. As soon as he let go, Vegeta flipped, landed on all fours, then rushed at PuiPui. The Saiyan smashed his head into PuiPui's stomach and utilized his energy to fly ahead, leaving PuiPui no choice but to have his feet taken off the ground and fly along with him involuntarily.

After merely five seconds of super speeds of flight, Vegeta came to a stop and watched as PuiPui continued soaring away for tens of dozens of yards. Holding his hand out, Vegeta fired a blue ball of energy in which he hoped would end it all. "Good-bye."

**Kaboom!**

The sight of seeing an explosion directly near PuiPui like that stunned all of the Zoon people who had been spectating the entire time. All of their true fighters were dead by this point, with nobody else to fend for them.

Turning around, Vegeta faced his two comrades, who were holding the areas in which they were injured. Just a few scratches and some drawn blood was all it took for Vegeta to deal with PuiPui—so it seemed. "Now-"

**PIPIP**

"You count me out too soon!" Flying with as much velocity as he could, PuiPui made sure that there was a substantial amount of force behind his strike prior to nearly crushing Vegeta's nose with his knee. Keeping his feet planted, Vegeta didn't take off anywhere but PuiPui showed no mercy whatsoever.

Not even using his hands, he kicked Vegeta across the face and the body relentlessly until he decided to end his combo with a double punch to the cheek and a jumping knee to the chin. Not even allowing Vegeta to get away from his sight, he grabbed the boy by his ankle and slammed him face first into the ground. Next thing he did was throw Vegeta up and blast him from behind.

With the energy attack spinning against his back, Vegeta was involuntarily being sent higher and higher into the sky. Just as he wouldn't to PuiPui, said fighter wouldn't let Vegeta catch a break. PuiPui flew past the Saiyan, turned around and came forth with a vicious close line before grabbing Vegeta by the tail and slinging him back down into the ground.

"Hahahaha!"

As he fell, Vegeta was hit by a multitude of ki attacks. So many were being sent his way that it was hard to tell whether he was being hit instantly by one after another or if they all were striking him at once. Regardless, it just made the fall that much more difficult to muster once he crashed.

Raditz watched with his mouth practically wide open. "Can you believe this? Someone strong enough to actually take Vegeta on? Should we help him?"

"No." Nappa held his hand in front of Raditz. "If there's one thing I know, it's that we don't interrupt the Prince's battles. He needs this."

Slowly rising up from the crater, Vegeta could be seen visibly tired and somewhat worn out. All of those hits had added up and it could be seen not only through his exhaustion, but the damage done to his overall attire as well. The scouter he wore had fallen off his face. The armored shoulder plates were cracked and his blue clothing underneath his armor were extremely torn.

"I'm not done...not yet!"

In a flash of light, he and PuiPui recommenced their battle.

As their two fists collided, a shaking boom resonated throughout the skies. Immediately following this, the two continued to go blow for blow, although it became apparent that PuiPui had an advantage over the prince.

_ZIP!_

Having vanished, PuiPui appeared behind Vegeta.

_ZIP!_

And after having made Vegeta turn around, he appeared behind him yet again. Vegeta turned around but Pui motioned alongside Vegeta and remained behind him prior to kicking the young Saiyan in the center of his back, cracking his armor even more.

He blocked Vegeta's elbow, karate chopped the Saiyan in the throat, then headbutted Vegeta in the face before kicking him up into the sky.

_ZIP!_

Vegeta was redirected right into the ground yet again.

With his arms crossed, PuiPui made it apparent that he wasn't even impressed by this point. "You gave me a decent warm-up, I can admit that. But seriously, how do you plan on having an entire people enslaved if you, the strongest, can't even beat me? You're pitiful!"

Vegeta slowly got back up, sneering at PuiPui. Before, he was enjoying himself but now he was upset. "Are you...mocking me!?"

PuiPui just smiled.

**"ARE YOU!?"**

Vegeta flew in for PuiPui once more, unacknowledging the growing fatigue that got to him during this battle. PuiPui didn't seem to mind at all since it just meant he was one step closer to victory.

A kick aimed for the neck was effortlessly blocked by PuiPui's arm. Vegeta hopped back and then rushed right in yet again for a punch, which was grabbed and officially rendered useless. Vegeta pulled his arms back and tried for a flurry of attacks. PuiPui had his own arms folded and continued to dodge merely using his head. Vegeta had already been gassed before but perpetuating his fatigue was not a smart move on the young Saiyan's part. An attempted side kick had been grabbed easily and Vegeta paid for it as he got kicked in the chest instead.

Seeing Vegeta sliding on the ground as he was didn't come as a nice sight for Raditz, nor Nappa. After he got back up, Vegeta rushed in for PuiPui yet again but was rejected with a nice solid foot to the chin. Quickly recovering in the air, Vegeta came down for more but PuiPui vanished out of sight.

Stopping just where he had last seen PuiPui, Vegeta turned around, confused.

"Over here."

**Bam!**

A solid punch knocked the prince down on his back yet again. Vegeta got up only to get kneed in the gut and receive an embarrassing concoction of punches all over the upper body. He was being treated as a personal punching bag and Vegeta had no idea of what to do to defend himself at this point. He grabbed PuiPui by the arm but had his hands smacked away just as quickly as he touched him.

Being pushed backwards, it seemed as if Vegeta started to lose his footing and fall down again.

Seeing this as the perfect opportunity to end the fight, PuiPui decided to make his last move. Vegeta was tough enough to remain on foot but by wobbling, it was only a matter of time before he landed over on his back.

With his hand aimed at Vegeta's body, PuiPui was just about to blast him at point blank range. "Let me help you with that."

In a flash of light, Vegeta had been sent away through the ground. To endure the searing and aching pain that came from this attack was like hell. Most would rather die but Prince Vegeta couldn't just fall so easily. Vegeta could hear the muffled noises of people cheering for his defeat in the background. Everything in his body felt weak. Never before was he as vulnerable in a fight as he was now.

"I-is he alive?" Raditz asked.

Nappa was obviously angered and frustrated at this point but he did his best to remain collected. Clicking his scouter to where he expected Vegeta to be at, he managed to get a reading. "I got it...he's still alive! His power waned down a lot, though."

"This isn't good." Raditz gulped down hard. Looking up at the skies, he couldn't see anything but stars and planets nearby. There being no signs of the full moon, he no longer was too sure if they'd manage to make it out alive.

Walking over to Vegeta, PuiPui looked down on him. The last attack took away all of Vegeta's armor and a good bit of his under clothing as well. "Wow, you're still alive. For a kid, you sure are made of tough stuff, y'know."

Vegeta slowly raised his bloodied face up to look into the eyes of the person he believed to now be his killer. He couldn't die like this but what other choice did he have? This person was his obvious superior and using an artificial moon to transform was out of the question for him. No, he could still beat him in this form.

But how?

PuiPui had his hand aimed at the boy's face. "A potentially great life cut short. How sad."

"NO YOU DON'T!"

Nappa realized he couldn't just stay out of it any longer. He understood that Prince Vegeta would hate for anyone to assist him in combat but how could he face the King and tell him that his son died in the battlefield? No, he needed the Prince. The Saiyans all did. He was their meal ticket to freedom and for that reason, Nappa wasn't just going to let him sit there and die.

From the temporary rest he had gotten, Nappa was almost back at one hundred percent. In an effort to fix this, he channelled up all his power at the very center of his stomach and drove it upward. Like a volcano on the verge of exploding, Nappa's entire body started to shake. And just after opening his mouth, a heap of energy followed out.

Vegeta grabbed at PuiPui's left leg with his right hand and wrapped his tail around the other leg. He held him still to make sure that he couldn't escape. Even if it meant swallowing his pride, this was Vegeta's only chance of survival. Nappa saw the opening and he took it.

"Let go of me!" Despite Vegeta holding both of his legs, he was still stronger and got away easily by kicking the Saiyan in the temple. Getting ready to end Vegeta with a blast of his own, PuiPui started to feel a warm sensation approaching him from behind. Wondering just what the hell it could be, he turned around.

Not able to react quick enough, PuiPui had been hit with the attack at full force. Having letting his guard down at perhaps the very worst moment of the fight, he paid for it dearly. Subsequent to enduring the attack's power, PuiPui stood on his feet, still as a statue. Smoke emanated from his body and he was barely breathing.

"I...I…" Confused and at the same time in total, shock, PuiPui couldn't even perceive what the hell just happened.

Nappa smirked. "Never turn your back on a Saiyan. Finish the bastard off, Raditz!"

"With pleasure." He rose his arms above his head and began to channel a white energy with crackling sounds in the palm of his hand. The pleas of mercy coming from the other Zoonians on behalf of PuiPui weren't ignored. Raditz listened to it but their begging only encouraged him to finish off PuiPui more.

"Adieu."

Far beyond weakened at this point thanks to Nappa, it became possible for Raditz to actually end the man's life. Due to still being in a state of shock, PuiPui couldn't move his body. One moment he was alive and well, with the advantage. But the very next...he was gone.

The inhabitants of Planet Zoon could only watch in horror as their best hope had been erased from the plane of existence by their intruders.

"I'll go get the Prince," Nappa told Raditz. "You know what to do."

"Of course." Slowly turning over to the Zoon people who had been watching the entire time, his lips curled into a devious smile, sending chills down the spines of his hopeless victims. "Now, are all of you going to still fight back or will more lives be lost?" Seeing that none responded at all, Raditz knew that he had them at their most vulnerable point. "Kneel in allegiance to Lord Freeza or die here!"

Though all were extremely reluctant, they had acquiesced.

Watching them all slowly kneel was like seeing his mission success load to that of one hundred percent. Once he saw every single individual kneeling before him, Raditz figured they had completed their job.

"You got em to comply, eh?" Nappa asked. Holding the unconscious Vegeta over his shoulder, he looked over all the remaining Zoon people.

"Heh. All of you stay grouped together. Once we leave, you will be having more visitors." Turning around, Raditz entered his ship with Nappa and Vegeta.

With the coordinates set to a nearby Freeza planet for the Saiyans to heal and get a new set of attire and equipment, the ship's door closed and they had taken off.

In his seat, Vegeta was slowly regaining his consciousness. His vision was blurry but he knew that he was on a ship heading back home. This was all he needed to know to realize that this was a mission accomplished.

Yet still, in the back of his mind, he had to wonder: was this how his people had been enslaved? Were they forced into Freeza's rule like this? He could imagine a group of proud Saiyan warriors fighting back in an attempt to keep their liberty and ultimately failing. But then again, they could have easily complied as well.

No, they couldn't do that. Saiyans were far too prideful to just kneel to some group of randoms. However, the end result had still been the fact that they were forced into being ruled over. The King never bothered to tell him this but by merely using his head, Prince Vegeta easily came to this realization.

The very thought made his stomach churn.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys are liking it so far. Let me know what you think of my portrayal of the characters or whatever else you think regarding the story so far.


	5. Kakarot's Spirit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot, due to his inherent obstinate character, gets himself in a pickle.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 5**

**"Kakarot's spirit"**

* * *

"I wanna go, I wanna go, I wanna go!"

As time went through its phases on Planet Vegeta, the evening was soon to come to a close. Gine had just closed up work for the day and she hoped to get some rest and peace. Unfortunately, she didn't get the latter of the two since Kakarot had been pestering her to have him go out hunting for the past three and a half weeks now. Though Gine did like the idea initially, she came to the conclusion that Kakarot was far too hasty and that he just wasn't ready yet. The typical animal posed no danger to a regular Saiyan, nor did it most Saiyan children. It wasn't of the fact that Kakarot was too young to go out and carry the task but that he was merely unprepared. The kid didn't even know how to fly, much less utilize his ki to at least a limited extent.

Upon removing her glove, Gine turned around and walked past her eager son to interact with a fellow worker, a lower-class lady like her, though a bit chunkier.

"Seems like he just won't let it go, huh?"

Gine sighed. In the back of her head, she heard the constant hisses Kakarot made, though she learned to tune him out a long time ago. "I don't know what's gotten into him lately, Gumeel. Ever since Raditz left, he hasn't stopped begging me to go hunting."

"Eh…" Gumeel scratched at the corner of her lip as she looked over to Kakarot. "it seems to me that he's doing more demanding than begging." Gumeel had long recalled Raditz's last words to Kakarot prior to him taking his leave just a few weeks ago. She was no expertise when it came to the psyche of an individual's motivations, but she figured that Kakarot wanted to go hunt so he could prove his brother wrong. She didn't see the importance of revealing that information to Gine, though. He's just a kid throwing a temper tantrum so he'd be fine eventually.

"Anyway, work for the day is done. I'll be seeing you tomorrow?"

"As always!" Gumeel slapped the gloves she wore on the working table. "I'll be having my child moved in as a late night delivery, so I won't be getting much rest until she gets here."

"Ah, right! I forgot you just had a kid!" Gine remembered the fine moment when she realized that she was bearing a child of her own. It was a magical feeling that still bubbled up inside whenever she reminisced. "Have they decided what they're going to do with her?"

"Elery will be working with us, too! I'll just wait a few years until she's ready and she'll be here before you know it."

"Well that's good to hear," Gine told her. "I'm happy for you."

"Thank you, Gine."

Once Gumeel had left Gine and Kakarot alone, Gine turned around. Kakarot didn't hide the fiery look in his eyes as he remained with his arms folded, staring her down. A slight cold chill went up her spine looking at her son. Amazing it was to see just how much Kakarot looked like his father, especially when he was moody. "Come on, off to bed."

"No." Kakarot remained on the counter, as defiant as ever. "Not until we go!"

"Sorry, but I'm not taking no for an answer." Grabbing her boy's hand, Gine yanked him off the table and forced the boy to go to bed so that they could get their needed rest. Kakarot whined, kicked and did all to free himself, but to no avail. Getting him to bed was a success.

But getting him to sleep was different.

* * *

With night time at its peak, soft snores could be heard coming from Gine. Kakarot, on the other hand, hadn't bothered to try and rest ever since he was put in bed. As he lied between his mother's lap, the young boy's eyes had remained fixated on the roof of their home the entire time. Ever since Raditz left, Kakarot couldn't help but get his brother's words out of his head.

_Weakling. You probably wouldn't be able to hunt an animal so you're better off with a freebie._

Those words made his face crinkle. It wasn't even because of the matter that Raditz physically kicked him but that he verbally insulted him after the fact. Kakarot didn't have an articulate understanding of what strength truly was but he could feel that it had great significance. He wanted to prove something contrary to Raditz's belittling belief of him.

Since his mother wasn't going to bring him then he was just going to go out and do it himself.

Slowly, Kakarot removed himself from the bed. He made sure that any potential noise he could have made stayed at a minimum. Once his feet softly touched the stone floor beneath him, the little boy grabbed at his armor that hung on a hanger equal to his height and put it on before making his leave.

Once out of his home and in the open, Kakarot got an open view of just how tiny he was in such a big world. He never walked fifty yards away from his house but by the time he walked twice that length, he felt a sense of freedom come over him. He wasn't at all familiar with the lands of Planet Vegeta, but he made it a personal mission to walk on until he came across any type of animal so that he could bring it down.

Unbeknownst to him, he was being watched from afar by an unnoticed figure—Gumeel. She, like Gine, decided to have her newborn child moved to her home. After her daughter had finally arrived home in an incubator, Gumeel caught a glimpse of Kakarot outside. She briefly wondered why the boy was left unattended but it didn't take long for her to figure things out. "He's sly…" If it was any other kid, Gumeel wouldn't have given it a second thought but this was her co-worker's kid. She knew  _exactly_  what the boy was up to.

Gumeel was aware of the potential dangers that hunting could bring to an unprepared individual so by keeping Gine and Kakarot's best interests at hand, she made sure to quietly follow the boy high above ground, where she could watch him openly. At the same time she wondered just exactly what type of diversion would come out of this kid's foxiness.

Her focus was far too great on the boy for her to realize that there was an extra party, who watched over the both of them.

* * *

Kakarot's purpose to get some game had him tirelessly walking the ground of Planet Vegeta. Once he left his village and passed empty lands, the boy did eventually come to a field with hundreds of grass leaning to the side, yet not detaching themselves off the ground as the wind blew hard. The many trees up ahead showed various bird nests and holes that animals more than likely remained in for sleep.

All it took was three hours for him to make it to this vicinity and he still didn't show any signs of exhaustion. The only time that Kakarot would be able to sleep tonight would be after he manages to catch something worthwhile. Up ahead he saw four legged creatures slowly passing on by with their heads lowered so that they, too, could hunt.

Copying this, Kakarot crouched down and started to slowly traverse through the grass that stood at a height far superior to his own, thanks to his itty bitty stature.

Gumeel looked on from above and realized these to be the moments of truth. Kakarot was sneaking up on a black coated animal with a scar over its left eye, which took the appearance of a buff cat. As Kakarot got closer and closer, his smile grew wider. It was right there! All he had to do was leap on the thing, dig his claws in it, and it'd ultimately be his for the taking.

**SNAP!**

Before he could make his move, the sound of a branch snapping from within the trees alerted the animal. Kakarot only got rewarded with dust and grass in his face due to the creature's unexpected take-off.

Despite the disappointment that came with not getting ahold of such an easy score, Kakarot decided to take his attention to where the sound had came from. Moving on along, the young Saiyan continued to take precaution with his movements. Once he made it near the trees unnoticed, Kakarot used a thick trunk as a form of cover.

Just up ahead, a two legged bear with a trunk and fangs could be seen guiding its 3 cubs to their home. Kakarot realized that the smaller ones had to be the weaker ones so he figured that he could get at least one of them. He would love to have the big one but to be able to get a hold of any of them at this point was ideal for the child.

"This kid is confident..." Gumeel whispered to herself.

Gumeel was so in tuned to the scene that she didn't realize her heavy weighted body started to take a toll on the branch she sat on. As the branch slowly started to detach itself from the tree, Gumeel also gradually lowered before falling down in a quick hurry.

After her body made a loud thud that rang through the area, she let out a moan. "Crud..."

This alerted not only Kakarot but the bears as well. Quickly, the young Saiyan boy looked over to the bears shooting off in one direction to flee away for safety. Not wanting to let them out of his sight, he blew his cover and took off on a chase.

The mother was in the lead with her first born just right behind. It was apparent that she had the capabilities to make a successful escape but Kakarot was proving himself to be a bit too fast for the youngest. Fast small breaths was all that the Saiyan child took as his quick thin legs drew him closer toward the young cub ahead of him. Once a few yards shy of making contact with it, he seized the opportunity by pouncing on it.

The two rolled over after the boy put all his weight on the cub. Kakarot did what he could by biting it, scratching at it, and even digging his nails into it. He did anything he could to subdue the animal so that he could prove himself capable of catching one.

The leaves and bushes surrounding them rustled as they continued to wheel around in a struggle. Once Kakarot found his way on top, he started to beat on the cub relentlessly. The mother didn't notice one of her children had been caught until she heard its cries ring out. As soon as she heard one of her babies whining for help, she came to an automatic stop, while the other two cubs continued running away toward shelter.

"Gotcha!"

Kakarot pounded his fist onto the head and face of the cub mercilessly. He didn't want to stop until the animal was motionless so he ignored the insane amount of blood on his hands and continued to beat at it, despite the fact it was already dead by this point. He mistook the cub's nerves for it still being alive and due to his ignorance, he kept on.

The heavy stomps of mama bear rushing in for Kakarot did catch the boy's attention. The booming growls that resonated from its mouth was something that he took on as a challenge instead of a warning sign. Now that the bigger game had his interest, Kakarot disregarded the dead cub underneath his body. Hopping up and standing his ground was virtually signalling the vicious animal to attack him.

The bear roared loudly yet again, putting its feeling of hatred and anguish into one single, bone chilling roar. Before the boy could even make sense of what happened, he found himself knocked on the ground, having been sent through a handful of trees as well. Just dead center in his breast plate was a crack—thanks to the bear, no doubt.

Kakarot hyperventilated with wide eyes of total bewilderment. The kid felt an unbelievable throbbing pain going on in his chest but he ignored that, as well as the aching all over his body. Any other non-Saiyan's intstinct would be to run but Kakarot's was the polar opposite.

He got back up and rushed at the big bad animal, provoking it yet again. He landed on its shoulders and started to recklessly punch at it. His little fists continuously being rammed against the bear's face only irked the pained mother even more. She grabbed Kakarot by his waist and slammed him into the ground beneath her. The boy's vision grew dizzy and his stomach started to feel funny after that one slam. The mother wasn't stopping until he was dead so she showed no mercy just as Kakarot did onto her cub.

Picking him up and down, she slammed the boy over and over.

Kakarot's eyes rolled up to the back of his prior to losing consciousness. Each slam trembled the very insides of his body and he just couldn't take it anymore. Before the bear could raise her feet and stomp on the boy's neck for sure measure, it was punched away. Gumeel had gotten up but not in time to save Kakarot from certain death. Luckily for Gumeel, the burden of salvation had been taken care of by someone else. She was uncertain as to who or what knocked the bear away but she made sure not to waste time and carry Kakarot to safety.

Gumeel grabbed Kakarot and put him over her shoulder before she took off into the sky as quickly as she could possibly go. Since she had no scouter, the chubby female wasn't able to tell whether or not he was still alive but she still had to send him off to the infirmary so that he could be treated back to health.

"Stay in there, kid, c'mon!"

* * *

As soon as Kakarot had been brought to an infirmary, Gumeel then made it her main objective to alert Gine and bring her in to check on her son. Though she was tired because of waking up in the middle of the night, Gine didn't hesitate to take off once she had been told what happened to Kakarot.

Gine and Gumeel were in a room surrounded by tanks that had rather effective methods of bringing people back to health, even if they were on the verge of death! Kakarot was in one of these tanks, being surrounded by a colored liquid similar to the incubators that young Saiyan children were placed in for proper growth.

Gine, in an area lit by blue and green lights illuminated from the tanks that constantly bubbled inside, had her hand placed on the glass in which Kakarot was protected by. Seeing her son with animalistic bruises and wounds all over his body made her heart sink to the pits of her stomach. The chances of a Saiyan dying in a rejuvenation tank was never high but the possibility had never been ruled out since it's happened before on occasion. She just hoped that small chance wouldn't take her son's life.

"I'm sorry this happened." Gumeel came up from behind Gine and placed her hand on the woman's back to comfort her. Gine managed not to shed any tears but she was just one step away from letting the waterworks go. There was a moment when Bardock had been placed in one of these things because of her incompetence on the battlefield. It was from there that she decided to no longer fight and she hoped to never see her mate or any of her children in any of these things. It just baffled her how this could happen to Kakarot, of all people.

"Why didn't you stop Kakarot from attacking them?" Gine softly asked.

"Ah?" Gumeel froze up.

Gine turned around to face Gumeel, her face hot red, fists balled and shoulders elevated. "Why didn't you stop him!? You said you followed him, right?"

Gumeel swallowed down hard. She could have easily lied and said that she got there at the last moment but doing such a thing just wasn't in her character. In her mind, she didn't expect things to go as horribly as they did in the first place. "I-I had confidence that Kakarot would be able to take care of himself!" she stammered. "I didn't think things would end up like that and as soon as they did. Before I could get there in time, someone else had saved him!"

As would anybody in a mood similar to Gine's, the woman felt the need to blame someone at the very moment. She didn't get a word in from any doctor at all since she made her arrival to the rejuvenation room, so she didn't know whether her son was going to perish or survive. Gine knew it wasn't entirely Gumeel's fault but her mind was clouded with emotion, though Gine retained enough logic to see that her tone toward Gumeel was superfluous. Gine quickly backed off and turned around to look back at her son. His heart rate seemed to be going just fine but anything could go wrong at any time and that worried her. "Yeah...sorry." Gine closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I just feel..."

"Hurt." Gumeel grabbed Gine's slouched shoulder. "I know. I've lost people I've cared about...even though they may not have cared about me. I know it hurts but I promise you, he'll be okay."

Gine still wondered who in the hell could have possibly swooped in and saved her son? According to Gumeel, she wouldn't have been able to make it in time, but someone else did? Was someone keeping an eye out for Kakarot? It couldn't have been Raditz, nor Bardock since both were out on missions. It left her wondering.

A beep followed by the opening of an automatic door caught the attention of the two female Saiyans. Right through the door appeared a Saiyan doctor, who looked rather young. Like any typical doctor/scientist such as Moroko or Shito, this Saiyan male wore a grey thick robe that fell down to his very legs with a strapped armor plate that covered his chest only. In his left hand was a rectangular touch scree monitor, which he used to collect data and keep track of any other necessities regarding his work.

"Whoah." Gumeel was blown away by this man's appearance. Unlike most Saiyan doctors, he looked rather young, with no signs of aging at all. The two long thick strands of hair that grew from his sideburns brisked past his shoulders before he came to a stop by the rejuvenation tank which Gine stood by. He realized that the blood on his hands from earlier weren't his since it belonged to one of the animals. Without a doubt, like a lot of past children, Kakarot made the mistake of attacking unprepared. Prideful and confident—sure—that garnered respect; however still foolish.

The doctor looked over to Kakarot and clicked on his pad a bit, looking over the information he accumulated revolving around the kid's initial condition upon his arrival and comparing that to his progress while in healing. "The treatment is going just as expected," he informed the two Saiyan women. "Kakarot ought to be brought back to full health by the morning, though we can't do anything about the scar that's on his chest. Seems as if the bear who attacked him had dug its nails deep down after stomping on him and managed to dig deep enough into the skin. Luckily enough, it wasn't deep enough to penetrate anything fatal internally."

Hearing this caused Gine to stumble back into a chair and let out a deep sigh.

"So he'll make a speedy recovery," Gumeel spoke, also relieved. "That's great news, doctor!"

"Call me Spench." He then tapped in a bit more information before finalizing his assigned person. "It says here that this boy was birthed just over three years ago, is that correct?"

"Yes," Gine confirmed. "Why?"

"Kakarot was born with a very low power. Although he's not being raised as a combatant, his power-level is typically rising as we speak since the injuries he's endured are being healed. He's already surpassed a power-level of ten and it gives us reason to believe his overall power will increase even higher. Our estimation is that he could range anywhere from 13 to 20 once he is in top condition. For a three-year old child, he could currently be sent on a frontier planet and be able to take care of it easily, especially if under a full moon. Would you like me to put a word in for him? He could make for a decent soldier."

Gine didn't give the question any thought and immediately shook her head. "No, Kakarot's not going out there. If it wasn't obvious enough for you, he wasn't even able to fight off an animal properly."

"Well, that's because he is untrained," Spench responded. "Surely if you taught the kid the basics of fighting and control, he could prove himself a worthy soldier."

"Maybe his father would accept it but as long as  _I'm here and alive_ , Kakarot stays as a worker. Understood?"

Spench merely nodded, respecting the woman's wishes. His job was to bring people to health and throw in a few suggestions but at the end of the day, the decision wasn't ultimately his. "I just figured I ought to throw in my opinion."

"Some opinions are more valued when you don't throw them out at all," Gine shot back sharply.

Seeing that the woman was now catching an attitude, Spench decided to cut this interaction short. "Stay here and wait tomorrow or leave and be back by morning. He'll be back at full health soon."

"Thank you, Spench," Gumeel told him. "We appreciate it."

"Mhm." Spench made his leave. He had a lot of other work to tend to and dealing with a moody female just wasn't his field.

"Well this is great. Kakarot gets to live and he's gonna be even stronger! Awesome, isn't it?"

"Eh." Gine corrected her posture while seated. To her, she didn't see the benefit in Kakarot becoming stronger. Sure, the boy got a rather amazing boost in power but he wasn't going to be out on the frontlines like Raditz and Bardock. There was no sense in increasing his power through battle if he was just going to remain on Planet Vegeta working alongside her.

"Yeah...I suppose."

* * *

The following morning, Kakarot had been retrieved from the infirmary and brought back home, where he was put to work immediately. He and his mother chopped up food normally as if nothing had ever happened the previous night. Gine did manage to move on from the incident but Kakarot didn't—he couldn't.

After slicing two giant legs of meat into a handful of thick pieces, Kakarot put a specific amount in separate sacks and carried them over to her mother, who handed them to a pair of Saiyans who were just getting ready to head off for an assignment. Most people came in the morning to collect their rations and then, the numbers just died off. There was no rush hour since things would normally run fluidly.

Kakarot slammed the butcher knife onto the wooden table and made sure it stuck there. His abrupt action brought him attention from both Gine and Gumeel, who looked over to him. "Kakarot, what's the matter?"

From the moment of his waking up until now, he couldn't get last night's events out of his head. He completely disregarded the fact that he managed to kill a baby bear and just felt shame of how much of a pitiful loss he faced at the hands of the bigger animal. He wouldn't be content with himself unless he could prove that he was indeed strong enough.

The boy hopped off the counter and looked up over to his mom. "I wanna go hunting," he told her.

_No, not this again!_

Gine lowered herself to one knee so that she could get eye-level with her son. "Kakarot, you know what happened last night! You  **can not**  risk that again, do you hear me?"

The boy just sneered in her face. After being brought back to health, he felt a sense of revitalization that he couldn't even come to remotely describe! It may have been of no matter to them but he was stronger and he could feel it. Now he was certain that he could take on the bear!

"Hmph." Kakarot did indeed hear her, but it didn't mean that he was just going to listen. He brushed by his mother and walked outside. "I'm still going."

Gumeel remained there and looked over to Gine, who was with her head down. Her son really wasn't going to let this go and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it. Even if she tried to keep him inside, he'd just sneak out and risk his life again but at the same time she didn't want him trying to live the life of a combatant either. She didn't know what to do. Gumeel realized that Gine was too deep in her mind to notice her son still walking off toward the same path that he took last night. "Are you going to go after him?"

"Yeah…" Gine rose to her feet. "Seems like I have no choice."

"What are you going to do?"

"I have no choice but to let him have what he wants. If Kakarot is going to go out and hunt animals, then he at the very least needs to know how to handle himself out there."

Gumeel nodded her head, in full agreement. "Best to do it now before it's too late."

"But I just can't leave work," Gine added.

"Don't worry, I'll cover for you."

"Really?"

"Mhm." Gumeel started to chop up more meat. "It's a rather slow day compared to usual so I can take this on for a while all by myself. Go on ahead!"

Gine smiled. Gumeel truly was kind but she let herself seem a bit more mean to others than she typically let on. Many saw it as a sign of weakness and she hated being bothered for being soft, though Gine couldn't care less. She appreciated Gumeel for who she truly was. "Thanks, Gumeel. I'll be back soon!" Gine shot out of the room.

In any other world, for a child to wander the streets by himself unattended would catch a few curious eyes, but not most Saiyans. Everyone else had been caught up in their card games, food, work, or just time for relaxing inactivity. Seeing a kid on by themself wasn't out of the ordinary but the fact that Bardock's spitting image was off about by himself did catch a few eyes, especially from someone who himself had a very striking resemblance.

"Kakarot, wait up!" Gine called out.

Kakarot ignored Gine and just continued walking. She called out his name a few more times but he still didn't look back. Even though Gine would yell louder and bring attention to herself, Kakarot stayed on the path. It wasn't until Gine caught up to him and grabbed him by the shoulder that she forced his attention.

"Kakarot," she said sternly. Seeing that he gave her no response, Gine quickly realized that he was giving her the silent treatment, something Bardock himself tended to do whenever he wasn't in a good mood. "Look, I get that I just can't stop you from going out there to do what you want but if you're going to hunt, at the very least, you have to be taught properly before you do."

A bit confused, Kakarot's brow furrowed.

"I'm going to teach you how to hunt, Kakarot," Gine said simply. "And properly."

Hearing these words come out of her mouth lit up the boy's eyes. For the first time in weeks, he smiled wide and started wagging his tail anxiously. If she really meant it, then surely she'd take him there! "Let's go!" Holding his hand out, he waited for his mother to grab it and fly him over to the hunting grounds.

"And that's the first thing." Gine pushed Kakarot's hand down. "You've got to learn to fly on your own." Slowly, Gine removed her feet from the ground and started to hover in the air. "Like this. See?"

Kakarot nodded.

"You know that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you're about to fight?" she asked him. As an answer to his mother's question, Kakarot merely nodded for a second time. He had that feeling last night as he was hunting those animals. "Push that feeling down to your feet and use it to levitate."

Kakarot mentally brought himself back to the moment where he was confronting that giant creature. As the warm feeling had been brought back to him, he did as directed and instinctually channelled that feeling down to his feet. Five seconds later, he started to rise off the ground like his mother. Proud of the fact that he managed to catch on, Kakarot continued to raise himself even higher.

"Hey, hey, don't go too high now!" Gine warned him.

"Teaching the boy, huh?"

The voice of a low and nerve assuaging voice had caught Gine's attention. Turning around, her eyes widened at the sight of this figure, who looked exactly like her son's. The stranger only smiled upon realizing that his hair and facial structure had taken her by surprise. If he were just a few shades lighter, then he'd look 99% like Bardock, save for his eyes, which were shaped like Kakarot's.

"Don't worry, I don't take offense," the young man said, breaking the ice. "I can see why you'd be surprised."

"Who are you?" Gine asked. Very rare was it for a peer to randomly talk to another unless they made an attempt to gain something beneficial for themselves, though this didn't seem to be one of those cases. This Saiyan looked extremely similar to Bardock and Kakarot and there must have been a reason. Could he be related to them?

"The name's Turles," he answered truthfully.

Gine wanted to ask a plethora of questions but so many were coming so quickly at once that she just couldn't spit the words out of her mouth. Never before did she see this Saiyan before but she felt as if she should have since he looked so much like her soulmate and his child.

"I see that you're  _just_ teaching your boy to fly?" Turles inquired, paraphrasing his initial question.

"Y-Yes," Gine answered. "He has to learn somehow now, doesn't he?"

"Indeed. It's just unusual for a Saiyan child with a battle power of 17 to not know how to fly. And also being Bardock's son, I just find it quite odd."

 _Raditz was flying as soon as he got out the tank_.

"You know Bardock?" At this point, Gine felt sure that this  _Turles_ figure had some relation to Bardock. Bardock and Kakarot's hairstyle were very rare amongst the Saiyan people and only a select few had it. To have this type of hair would mean that they're of  _some_ blood relation—at least in her opinion. If they were related, then it'd stand to show that this man was on the younger side of the family, given his rather thin build and clean face.

Turles had to quickly catch how he spoke. This was his first time introducing himself to an extended part of the family and he was already saying too much. "What low-class doesn't? I hear many around this area tend to adore him for some odd reason." His eyes slightly narrowed. "I came to see what the fuss was about but he's just another low-level soldier."

"Well, yes..." Gine's eyes veered off for Kakarot. She had to look around for a second until she spotted her boy flying around in circles, getting used to this newly learned ability to fly around. Gine did question how she could deduce that this kid was Bardock's son but then again, only those two had such hair in this area.

"So, what's today's lesson? Going out to take him hunting, I presume?"

"Yes," Gine answered. "He's been pestering me a lot to go hunting and he just wouldn't take no for an answer. He even snuck out and risked his life last night just to do it!"

"Ah...so you really haven't been left with any choice, have you?"

"No, not at all."

Hearing this put a smile on Turles' face. "Take it as a message from the universe, miss. A lower-class Saiyan he may be, but a sign it also is, indeed. He has that fighting spirit." Deciding to cut their meeting short, Turles began to walk away. "It's been a pleasure. I'll be seeing you  _much later on_."

This guy had virtually left Gine speechless.

_I've got to tell Bardock about this when he gets back home._

Before Gine could start getting to thinking deeply about this, Kakarot had taken off. Seeing her young boy breezing through the sky as if he'd been doing so for years had alerted the woman. "Hey!" she shouted. "Wait for me, Kakarot!"

* * *

Once Kakarot had touched down in the same fields he arrived at last night, Gine had came to a stop as well. When Kakarot looked passed the grassy fields and onto the trees, Gine caught on to the major possibility that it was in that specific area in which Kakarot took his beating.

Gine noticed her son's anxiousness to jump right into action and to start the hunt again but there was still more learning. "Kakarot."

"Hm?"

"Watch this."

Gine rose her hand above her head and aimed it to the sky. Through Kakarot's eyes, a bright glow appeared, which emanated from his mother's palm. Using her other hand, Gine fired a ki attack for the other ball of energy and used it to blow it up. "See that?"

Never before had Kakarot laid his eyes on such a thing. To see it for the first time was like magic to him. With his want to learn everything that he saw, Kakarot mimicked his mother and did the same thing: firing one energy ball and firing off another. Unlike Gine, Kakarot's aim was absolutely terrible.

Gine chuckled at the sight and ruffled her boy's hair. "Nicely done."

"Hehe. Can I go now?"

Gine nodded.

Once his mother had given him the greenlight, Kakarot took off that instant. No longer did he rely on his feet, but flight instead. Once he made it past the very first tree he hid behind last night, the boy shot up and above until he appeared above all of the trees.

Now he didn't feel so little anymore.

Using his great sense of sight, Kakarot scoped out the area. He saw birds in their nests like before and even some smaller animals digging holes but he paid none of them any mind. He looked out for the bear that he fought the previous night. Looking out a bit more, he saw a lifeless body.

After seeing her son moving into the area of trees, Gine followed. She spotted him crouching down, touching a small animal that had been torn piece by piece, surrounded by its own dried blood. It was no doubt that it had been preyed upon by scavengers.

Kakarot pointed at the bear as he looked over to his mom. "I killed it."

"Really? That's great!"

"But it's little," Kakarot added. He no longer treasured this kill because he desired to catch the other. "I want the big one that beat me."

Gine wasn't too sure about that still, given the damage that Kakarot had taken by this creature.

**SNIFF SNIFF**

Kakarot's tail had stood on alert after catching a familar scent within the area. The sense of smell he had was correspondent to that of the big bear he fought last night. It had came back, albeit he wasn't aware why. Even though the creature was just an animal, it did turn around to mourn over its lost child. Kakarot didn't understand it, nor did he care, for he just wanted to get his kill.

Looking down, Kakarot noticed a few pairs of fresh tracks. They were equal to the shape of the bear's feet so it had to be it! His tail wagging was a definite indicator of his enthusiasm, which in itself was self-explanatory: he was close!

Kakarot hopped from one track to another and his mother just followed behind and kept a close eye on him. Gine was surprised as to how quickly Kakarot was catching onto the basics of hunting, despite not even being taught! Everything was just being learned on his own and it showed Gine just how dedicated he was to proving himself. She was worried albeit proud at the same time.

Once they made it to what seemed to be the freshest track, Kakarot looked around for a possible home that they could be residing in.

"Look," Gine whispered.

Kakarot's head jerked over to a nearby pond of water ahead being tended by a bear and two cubs. Kakarot's nose fidgeted prior to him confirming those bears to be the ones he came across last night.

The boy showed no hesitation and aimed one arm out. The trio were still getting over the loss of a loved one and were doing what they could to move on now. The plan was to find another safety zone as today was their last day around here. None of them expected the Saiyan boy to be back so soon and it showed.

Whines coming from both cubs caught the attention of the mother, who looked on to see both of them falling into the pond of water helplessly. Watching the blood of her own mixing with the once pure water was nothing other than shocking.

"HEY!" Kakarot yelled.

"Kakarot, what the hell are you doing?" Gine hoped that her son would also take the mother bear down so that he could get his successful game but apparently, it was much more deeper than that for him at this point. "You just don't call it out like that!" She at the very least expected Kakarot to remain silent and catch the mama bear off guard as well.

Kakarot observed how disheartened the bear was last night from him killing its child so he knew that it would be even more angry after his murder of her last two babies. At this point, the bear would have no choice but to attack, which would give Kakarot exactly what he wanted.

The bear stomped at Kakarot like a raging bull, roaring. The little boy just smiled and fired off a plethora of energy attacks. This did slow the animal down but there was no cease to its movement. Just moments before it came into contact with him, Kakarot ascended to the sky, turned around, and proceeded to fire off more.

The bear started to howl in pain, which made Gine feel somewhat uncomfortable. "Kakarot, I think it's done for! If you keep going, it won't be worth eating!"

He heard his mother loud and well though he didn't listen to her. Taking very much pleasure in exacting revenge on this vile animal, Kakarot used his other hand to fire off more scorching ki attacks. His enjoyment of this made Gine's stomach churn. She expected Kakarot to not show any mercy but she didn't anticipate him getting a kick out of this. He looked like one of those ruthless Saiyans in a combat zone!

Once the bear had fallen over on his back, Kakarot still hadn't come to a stop. He wanted to keep on going until the thing was literal ashes.

" **ENOUGH!** " Gine smacked him across the face.

The sudden slap had made him come to an immediate stop. He looked up to his mother, feeling somewhat embarrassed. Why would she slap him? He was doing just fine!

"I brought you here so that you could hunt like you wanted, not so that you could be a sadist!"

"But I was having fun!" Kakarot yelled in protest.

Gine just shook her head. Not once had Kakarot been put on the battlefield and he was already enjoying the feeling that came with taking lives. She understood why many of her people loved to fight but did they have to enjoy the senseless murder that came with their jobs, too? It didn't really bother her nowadays but to see her three-year old son taking pleasure in the pain of other sentient beings was very alarming to her.

"Let's just pick them up and bring them home, Kakarot."

Turles kept a close eye on Kakarot from afar, scrutinizing his every move. He could tell this was the boy's first time and seeing his instinctual performance on display put a smug smile over the dark skinned Saiyan's face. "A fine prospect indeed.  _Heh."_


	6. Royal Destiny

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prince Vegeta comes back home, where he learns of his true purpose as the future King of Planet Vegeta.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 5**

**"Royal Destiny"**

* * *

"I take it your injuries weren't all that bad but you can still use the rejuvenation chamber if you wish."

Nappa and Raditz had just came back from Planet Zoon and arrived to a nearby Freeza Planet, where they decided to report in their successful mission and get a change of armor. Solely by looking over the ruined attire that they showed up with, the humanoid amphibian doctor noticed that they had went through quite the battle. Very rare did any warriors come back from a conquest with such damage done with no lethal injuries. From his point of view, all three of them were given a great deal of fortune.

Raditz sat down on a seat with his head slumped, sleeping as Nappa remained standing on top of the grey metal floor. His eyes hadn't left the Prince for a while since he felt obligated in making sure that Vegeta was healing properly. The balding Saiyan had a few bruises here and there but they weren't anywhere as bad as Vegeta's, which needed immediate medical attention upon their touch down. He wanted to stay but he sure was in need for a hefty meal.

"No need, we'll be fine," Nappa responded to the doctor. "How long will it be until he's at full condition?"

"Another 25 minutes will suffice."

"Okay." The snot bubble coming from Raditz popped as soon as he was given a hard nudge from the bigger Saiyan, which tipped him over onto the floor. "Get up kid."

"Huh? Wha-?" Raditz stood up, looking around frantically, eyes fluttering like a butterflies wings.

"C'mon, kid. Let's go eat."

The idea of food had Raditz quickly hop on the floor with his tail wagging side to side. "Oh, I can definitely use a meal!" The feeling of drowsiness was gone in an instant. Sleepiness was now replaced with the sensation of hunger.

"Haha. I know. I could have been an ass and not wake you up but that's not me."

"Yeah, right," Raditz replied sarcastically.

With the two Saiyans walking by one another through the cool, silver corridors, any soldiers that happened to be approaching them from afar had swiftly motioned themselves near the cold walls so that they could avoid any possible contact with them. Saiyans were typically looked down on from other races within the Freeza Force but like the casual racists that they were, they wouldn't dare spew any provocative insults in a Saiyan's face, for they knew that they could potentially pay for it with their lives.

"We really could have died back there," Raditz said, reflecting on their most recent mission. Though everything happened extremely fast, Raditz was aware of the fact that  _if_  Nappa had not been there by his side, then he wouldn't be alive at this very moment. A part of him wanted to thank Nappa but he didn't do so as the older Saiyan really didn't care much for another's verbal gratitude. After all, a soldier's duty was to make sure that their mission was a success. In order to ensure such, then as many men needed to be alive as possible, so a  _thank you_ truly wasn't essential in this instance; Nappa's actions were to be naturally expected.

"If it wasn't for Vegeta, then we'd be dead," Nappa told the long-haired boy.

"What do you mean? It's because of you that we're still alive! You saved me and Vegeta!" Raditz recalled Nappa taking the thing by surprise, which opened the opportunity for him to kill of the being. In Raditz's eyes, if not for Nappa, then he and the others would all be space dust.

Nappa chuckled and gave Raditz a soft pat on the back, causing the boy to stumble and almost fall on his face. "Nah, kid. If you didn't notice, that fool was so focused on Vegeta that he didn't even bother to look back at us. He made the worst mistake of turning his back on a Saiyan in battle. Vegeta got him by the legs so the guy kicked him. That bought more time for my attack to get there so when he did turn around, it was already too late, eheheh. Vegeta did most the work while you and me just finished him off."

With Nappa putting it that way, Raditz did come to realize that his older comrade make a good point. "Oh. I guess you're right. I didn't see it like that."

"Enough of reminiscing about that dump of a planet." Nappa licked his lips. "Time to eat!"

* * *

Vegeta remained in the rejuvenation chamber but the young warrior wasn't unconscious any longer. While submerged in the revitalizing juices of the healing machine, he couldn't just couldn't get those final moments of Planet Zoon out of his head. Was he truly going to die by the hands of that fighter?

Had Nappa and Raditz not been there, he would not have survived, but he couldn't care less about those two.

This was the first time in his life that he ever came close to death. Sure, the Prince had come across challenging battles before but none like this! Should his pride be hurt or should he be thankful of the fact that he'd only grow stronger from this? He didn't know how to feel about this. It looked bad on him to be beaten up by someone of an inferior species, especially as Royal blood of the most powerful race in the Universe. However on the other hand, Vegeta would only get stronger and as a prince, growth in strength was a necessity!

Not only that, but the mission still got to him. He had no problem with killing wastes of life but the concept of the mission was an annoyance. To imagine his own people being taken and forced to pledge allegiance like that was insane! He's seen his father forced to kneel by the presence of someone to consider himself a Lord but that was different...was it?

**BEEEP!**

Unfortunately, he couldn't figure these running thoughts uninterrupted. Subsequent to the notification sound that came from the tank, the liquids inside had drained prior to the hatch opening. Opening his eyes, Vegeta's sight carried on over to the doctor that brought him back to health. Said doctor had a set of clothing prepared for him, neatly stacked in his palm.

Vegeta got down and jacked the clothing out of the man's hand. As the boy started to dress, he also spoke. "Update: what is my current battle power?"

The doctor looked on a clipboard full of stacked sheets of paper with scribbled notes. Upon looking over the information he drafted down, he spotted something rather correlative to the current topic at hand. "Well, according to the info collected, you came here with a battle power of 500."

"Five hundred?" Vegeta removed his hands from his ankle after slapping his shoes on, stomping his feet on the ground. The Prince's abrupt action struck a nerve and caused the doctor to jump back in fear. Due to trying to force the words out of his mouth due to his anxiousness, he started to stammer.

"B-but surely y-you were weakened...I-I mean, you were beaten pretty badly...heh."

Vegeta came to his senses and calmed down. "Right, that is true. I'm not used to reporting in under such conditions."

"Why yes, of course." He then looked back to the paper, now damped with sweat. "But to answer your question, sir: your power-level has jumped to...7,200!?" When he first read the power, he was shocked by it. But to read it again before the young eight year old and look at him was just another level of crazy. Vegeta was still a child with power that excelled a great portion of Freeza's entire army. It was terrifying to think what kind of power this boy would have by the time he was full grown.

Vegeta's tail wagged back and forth happily once he heard the new power jump. He always knew that Saiyans grew stronger after battle though now it seemed to him that  _the harsher a battle had been for a Saiyan warrior, then it just meant the bigger the power boost_ as a result—if alive by the end of course.

_If I were to face that big lipped bastard now, I'd crush him!_

"Good." he slapped on a glove. "Where are my subordinates?"

"They went to the dining hall, sir."

Vegeta put on a red scouter that was on the counter for him and made his leave without sharing anymore words. Despite his size, Freeza's men were extra cautious around him for knowing his reputation as Saiyan royalty. And if one were to lack such knowledge, a mere quick scan of his battle-power would effortlessly repel any potential foolish benighted trouble makers.

By the time Vegeta made it to the dining hall, he could see Raditz and Nappa emptying all the food that were being given to them. The meal attendants were all running to the kitchen and back in an attempt to stay on schedule with the Saiyans' insatiable appetite. Some fell over and tripped, even knocking into other waitresses that moved along quickly in the vicinity. Despite the multiple delays that took place, Nappa and Raditz showed no care in the world and just ate whatever was close to them. Other soldiers didn't even dare going near them upon witnessing some others getting robbed of their rich cuisine.

Raditz and Nappa's good time was cut short when Vegeta had called out their names. The two Saiyans looked over to Vegeta with their mouths full, awaiting orders. If they had to guess, it was that their young superior wished to head back home—ASAP.

"We're heading back to Planet Vegeta. Finish your food and be on your way to the ship." He turned around and walked away.

"You don't wanna eat?" Raditz slightly pushed himself up from his seat to ask.

Vegeta just ignored Raditz and left the area. He had business to tend to once he arrived back home so he didn't plan on wasting any time by staying here a second longer, even if it meant eating fine meals.

"Guess not," Nappa joked, much to Raditz's displeasure.

* * *

In a lavish, well cut green field behind the Saiyan Palace, King Vegeta as well as his middle-class men were surrounded by a few of their best scientists. One of them was the young and reputable Kuni. Next to her were Shito and Moroko, both carrying bottles of their most newly engineered experiments. On the outside they appeared to be very patient but their anxiousness started to linger every once and a while as they hoped that success would come out of their current scientific assignment.

"The Prince will be here shortly, my King," one of the Saiyans told Vegeta.

The scientists, as demanded of them, were to be prepared prior to the Prince's arrival. King Vegeta timed exactly when his son was estimated to arrive so they had only been outside for the past five minutes. He couldn't care less of if whether or not the scientists were truly finished with their work or not. Either they were to pass this or fail. If they were to do the latter, then all fault would be bestowed upon the little clone girl and his two top Saiyan scientists.

"Is everything set, Kuni?" Vegeta asked.

She looked through the data collected on her pad prior to confirming with a simple nod, also following up with verbal reassurance. "Everything went through efficiently, though only via artificial simulation. Here will be our first true visual test."

"Hmm." King Vegeta folded his arms. If the genetic engineering of these Saibaimen were to truly come to fruition, then he'd be most enthusiastic. If not...then he'd merely punish those responsible and try again. If it hadn't become apparent to others by now, the king wasn't accepting failure as an option. He really never did. The idea of his son becoming the first Super Saiyan in ages was chilling yet exciting as well, but that was very far ahead into the future. His focus needed to be on the now, which would eventually lead up to his ambitious expectations of Vegeta IV.

"The Prince is here, sir."

Prince Vegeta touched down alongside Nappa and Raditz. Two of the three were greatly curious as to what was going on so they decided to stick around and see what all this was about.

"Son," King Vegeta called out.

Moroko, Shito, and the mid-class warriors all bowed briefly before rising, to acknowledge the royal youngling's presence. Prince Vegeta's eyes veered off to Kuni, who had her eyes fixated on her pad the entire time. Not once did she bother to look over to him, even after his arrival had been announced.

"Do you not bow?" Vegeta called her out.

Kuni slowly turned her head to face the young boy. "As far as I'm concerned, I do not  _abide_  by your Saiyan customs. I and my replicas are only here to do our jobs."

Vegeta's eye twitched. "I beg your pardon!?"

Nappa and Raditz looked at one another, eyes wide, and then looked back on. Very rare did anybody not respect the prince and not pay for it in return.

"Enough," King Vegeta interrupted. "You are here to test out your powers on the Super Saibaimen, not to bicker with our  _collectives_."

"Super Saibaimen?" Nappa and Raditz muttered simultaneously.

"After I was told to get back to working on the soil, which  _ **was**_ my initial idea…" Kuni narrowed her eyes at Moroko and Shito, who looked away. "we've managed to make an advance in our progress, which of course, is now officially completed."

_Her idea?_

Young Vegeta was sure he was the one to come up with this himself. It was thanks to his suggestion that Zorn had given the working scientists the idea. He remembered specifically proposing this suggestion as he ate with his father in the palace's dining room just mere weeks ago. Did this mean that  _she_  beat him to the punch?

"After a bit more experimenting, we've established three different sets of these creatures. In one of the bottles that Mister Moroko and Shito hold, the overdeveloped soil all contain different elements of seed, one special to their own. We classified them into three separate sets. The weakest have a power of around 3,000. The above average ones measure to around 7,000 as the  _best_  ones we've created have a power of around 10,000."

Regardless of knowing that it wasn't his place, Raditz spoke up anyway. "But isn't that a bit dangerous?' he asked. "I mean, to use these on the battlefield for any other Saiyan would be bad for them if the things decided not to follow orders."

"That is exactly why these sets will be used only by the middle-class and elite, young one," Zorn told the boy.

"Oh…"

"My current power-level is 7,200," Prince Vegeta stated. "Put the middle set in. They match up best to my current power."

"Are you sure, son?"

Vegeta grinned. "Of course." The Prince unclipped his royal cape from his shoulder plates and tossed them over to Raditz, who was blinded by the sheet covering his entire upper body.

_Let's do it!_

Shito unbottled one of the oval glass jars containing the Saibaimen as he walked over to the hole that they poked into the ground earlier. He placed the bottle upside down and forced the green pea to come out, then he covered it once it was inside. "Here," Shito called out to his equal.

Moroko tossed him one of the soil bottles for him to open it and place on top of the raw Saibaimen. Once that was done, Shito patted on the dumped material. "Now we see." After he rose back up, the Saiyan scientist took a few steps back and kept his eyes peeled. Within the next minute, they'd be able to see if all this testing was ultimately for nothing or not.

Prince Vegeta was ahead of everyone else and watched on. Usually, it took nothing but a couple seconds for the things to pop up but here it seemed to be taking longer than normal. "Seems like a failure to me."

"Be patient," King Vegeta advised. "Forget not that these are enhanced variations so chances are, it takes more time for them to develop completely."

The Prince scoffed and looked back in front of him. He'd rather be in his quarters getting some rest instead of wasting his time. Just as he was on the verge of turning away and walking off, the tinkered soil before him started to shake.

_**PLOP!** _

Out of the hole came a red colored Saibaimen with green eyes, its appearance having taken an entire 180 compared to the normal versions' external appearance. As soon as it made itself known to the naked eye, the scouters of all the Saiyans started to go off like an alarm ring.

**7,000**

Most were baffled to see such a power coming from one of them. One of these had the power to conquer entire worlds and they worked best in groups. If there were dozens of these new and improved Saibaimen running amok, they'd be hard to stop.

"Kekekeek!"

"Amazing!" Raditz exclaimed.

"Success." Kuni smiled.

The creature was confused to just be birthed and see itself surrounded by so many different people. It was unpredictable and obviously anxious like any Saibaimen would be but just as expected, they did indeed wait to follow orders.

"You fight me!" Vegeta yelled.

"kekekeke!" It hopped up and down in excitement.

"Heh."

Now that it knew its duty, Prince Vegeta sprung into action. He was expected to attack first and so, his first punch directed for the chest had been blocked. The Saibaimen made an attempt to claw at him but Vegeta was one step ahead and leaned back, raising his legs up in the process to kick away the thing.

it slid away briefly thanks to its sharp claws in its feet and immediately came back once it rebounded. Vegeta hopped up just in time but that didn't save him. The Saibaimen rushed in for him, continuing on with his assault.

Everyone watched as the two had an aerial fight, blocking and countering to the best of their ability. Everyone but the King had trouble keeping up with the fast paced action.

So far it seemed as if Vegeta and the Saibaimen were at a stalemate due to the fact that neither of them were landing a single blow. Eventually one of them did get struck, and it happened to be Vegeta. While unexpected, Vegeta was the first one to be hit, though it didn't come as much of a surprise.

Vegeta crashed on his back but got on his feet as soon as he made contact with the ground. Subsequent to regaining his footing, he elbowed the oncoming creature across the face and followed up with a fast set of punches to the stomach prior to making an attempted kick at its head.

The other hits landed though the boot that was aimed for the abnormal creature's temple had been blocked. Vegeta had been clawed directly in the stomach, his opponent pushing with enough force to penetrate the armor. Vegeta retaliated as the Saibaiman's claws made contact with his skin, grabbing its wrist and tossing it into the sky. Once his following blast came into contact, smoke after the big explosion covered a big portion of the area.

"Hmp! Just as strong as me it may be, but its lack of intelligence on the battlefield will still be its downfall."

"Kekekeke!"

The creature shot at Vegeta from his blind side and tackled the boy onto the ground. Being taken by surprise, Vegeta wasn't able to recover himself until after he got punched in the face over a dozen times. He had bruises and blood leaking from his aching face but it was gonna take far much more for him to be stopped.

Vegeta grabbed the thing by its face and shoved it away from him to use his free hand as an attempt to blast it, which was a success. Neither stood down for long though and shot back at one another, this time going blow for blow. If one were to land a hit, then they'd immediately receive the same, only with much more force. This carried on for a while.

"This is a special moment," Nappa commented.

Hearing Nappa's voice, the King had instantly been reminded of something. He turned to the tall muscular Saiyan and beckoned Nappa to approach him. As soon as Nappa was within hearing range, King Vegeta spoke to him. "Tell me, how hard was the battle on Planet Zoon for my son? Prior to his departure, he only had a power-level of 5,000."

"Oh, it was the most challenging fight for the Prince yet," Nappa said. "He was moments away from being killed but I chipped in at the right time to save his hide."

"And my son didn't scold you for intervening in his battle?"

"I'm surprised he didn't, actually," Nappa chuckled. "I guess it was me just saving them two from certain death instead of having a worthy battle myself."

King Vegeta nodded, his eyes still on the fight. He knew his son didn't like to have anyone jump in during the midst of battle and he perfectly understood why. However, at the same time, he was thankful that Nappa did save his boy's life, for Vegeta was to only become stronger out of this. "Remind me to host you as one of our newest mid-class subjects after this."

Hearing this had Nappa uncoil his tail and wag it back and forth like a dog seeing its owners for the first time in days. "Really?"

"Yes."

Nappa had to hold in a squeal just to not break character. He didn't think this opportunity would come for him so soon but then again, it was only a matter of time. His power rivaled that of some of the mid-class warriors and perhaps hearing that he saved his son in battle was just the little extra credit needed for promotion. "Thank you my King," he bowed his head.

"It's not official yet," he reminded. "Stick around and watch the fight."

"Yes, sir!" Nappa saluted.

A crashing noise had been made as the Saibaimen had been kicked away into the ground. Prince Vegeta descended on land, a bit tired, yet excited. Once he won this fight, he knew that he'd only become stronger because of this and that was the only thing he looked forward to at this point.

"You're resilient, as expected. Get up so we can end this fight!"

The Saibaimen got up as ordered and made more clicking noises, communicating that he felt the same way. Once the two hopped off their back feet, they came to their third clash.

The fight between Prince Vegeta and the Saibaimen was a hard fought battle by both. Despite the Prince being naturally far more intelligent than the plant based creature, said specimen wasn't to be understimated, for it could take someone's life at even the most unexpected moments. The young royal boy was aware of this and for that very reason, he did manage to come out victorious. Being on his guard the entire fight didn't save him from taking quite a few brutal set of attacks, though.

* * *

Subsequent to the vicious battle, King Vegeta was in his son's quarters, which had a rejuvenation tank in the corner of the room. Also, in the area, was a counter with his son's new set of clothing.

Reflecting through the recent fight, the King noticed how similar his son's style was to his own, though he recognized a far superior fierceness from the prince. King Vegeta himself was commonly known for being merciless and direct in battle so to see his son with an even bigger fire than he made him proud.

_**BEEP!** _

He watched the water drain down and took it upon himself to open the hatch. Prince Vegeta had a battle scar across his chest from the hard fight with the creature but in the end, he did take the victory, as expected.

"Feeling better?"

"A lot better." His first decision after getting out fully healed was to get himself dressed.

"You can expect this to be a common thing from now on until you killing these things on a whim becomes a common ending in battle. I need you to be as strong as possible before you become a man."

"Right...for Freeza, correct?"

A brief pause came from the King prior to him answering truthfully. "Yes." Between these two, they never had scouters on or nearby as they knew that Freeza could be eavesdropping at any time. Besides, a King and the Prince always required genuine privacy when interacting on a personal level.

"Knew it." Prince Vegeta sat down, only half dressed. "Tell me, father. What is the history between you and Freeza?"

_Why is he asking this now?_

While curious as to why his son wanted to know this at the current moment, the King figured that he'd find out his son's point of view through fluid conversation. "It's not exactly the history between Freeza and us but more so his father, Cold. It was with him that we started a cooperative business together."

"Cooperative? Or do you mean one-sided?"

"I beg your pardon?"

The young Vegeta stood up and walked to his father, stopping shy of a few yards. "This subjugation mission on Planet Zoon made me think. Those people were forced to pledge their allegiance to Freeza and even had their best men killed in the process until they finally acquiesced. If Freeza is anything like his father, then Cold didn't come to you kindly. He forced your hand, didn't he?"

King Vegeta remembered it vividly. The Saiyans back then always had a reputation for conquering planets and stealing resources, even before they came across Cold's establishment. To be put into servitude was something the Saiyans was against. As one would expect of this obstinate race, they did indeed initially show objection to being converted into slaves, though to no avail. The blood-shed continued on until an agreement was made. Their indentured service for the same life that they've always lived.

"He did."

"Hmph." Prince Vegeta started to put on his armored clothing.

"But that's the reason that I trust in you to grow strong and be able to dethrone those bastards! It is you, my son! You were born with a power paralleled by none! Your destiny is to turn a mere legend into absolute reality. With your inherent gift, you will have the power to take them down!"

"And you?"

"Tch! If you aren't aware, I am far too old. In the next twenty or so years, I'll be old and frail. Stronger, perhaps, but nowhere near enough to take on Freeza. For you to be born with a battle power far superior than me or your grandfathers is the sign. Your brother also has the potential but he's far too timid. A true Super Saiyan is a  _ferocious_  warrior. Tarble lacks the fire that a true Saiyan soldier possesses. This is why I'm pushing you instead of having you go around and doing simple missions.  _By the time you are King, you will be ready_."

"Good. The thought of serving under someone lesser than us never set well with me, father. Their day will come and we will reign supreme, not them."

"Yes." King Vegeta put his hands on his son's shoulders. "But patience is key. Power doesn't just come to you as you grow. You have to work for it! Fight strong and train hard. Only doing that will put you in the position of standing alone as the strongest warrior that the universe will ever come to know!"

Prince Vegeta smiled smugly. To him, fighting was the only thing that had ever been on his mind—that and becoming the King of his own people. Now he had something far bigger to look forward to; having everyone at his beck and call throughout the cosmos would be overwhelming for some, but not for this ambitious youngster.

"Most definitely."


	7. To Sacrifice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bardock and Co. on Planet Kanassa

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 7**

**"To Sacrifice"**

* * *

Limited with a very small time frame to prepare for the attack of the Saiyans, the Kanassan army was obligated to be extremely rigorous through the course of their training.

Just hours before the expected event—the day of a full moon, a Kanassan soldier by the name of Toolo looked through a double sided mirror, looking down at the roads, all carrying not a single lively soul. The tall, blue steel made buildings were all filled with bright lights as there had been activity but Toolo knew of the fact that the natural citizens were all in protected vaults underground on the Planet.

It was a ghost town.

Toolo was thankful of the fact that he had a strong mind, for if he didn't, then his wife and children would have been disheartened at the concerning thoughts running through his head—had they been able to read them. Despite being told by the commander-in-chief precisely what they needed to do in other to come out victorious, Toolo still wasn't sure. A constant mixture of visions continued to make way way into his mind. He was unsure of if they were to come out victorious or not, given that his visions didn't manage to answer that one daring question.

Routine was what they put the most importance upon when it came to their training. The soldiers did not have the capability of seeing thorough events of the future like their commander-in-chief did, mainly because his state of mental strength was far superior to the soldiers—their leader even. The main reason why Thon wasn't leading was because he didn't have the galls to run an entire nation of people, but he did have the qualities of a leader when it came to war. From the many times of the past when they needed him, he came through but now, Toolo just wasn't sure this time around.

The creaking sounds of the door opening behind him had caught his attention. Turning around, Toolo had met eyes with Thon.

"Chief." Toolo placed his right hand over his chest with his left on his left leg as he bowed before him.

Standing with his hands behind his back, Thon maintained an authoritative posture. While he ordered the army and their men precisely what to do, going through every minute spot of detail conscientiously, his men could still potentially mess up. They were told how they were going to be attacked and when and where so they set up a plan in which they would use to attack them, a plan very similar to the past ones they had used for previous intruders.

"Everyone are currently set at their posts and they are awaiting your arrival so that you can lead them into battle."

"You're not fighting alongside us with this one?"

Thon gave a nearly unnoticeable smile and shook his head. "No, no need. I have the utmost faith in you all to be able to do this on your own. You've managed to take the past two intrusions by yourself with very little difficulty, so I expect the same from you here. However, just to be sure, throughout the battle, I'll be sure to keep my mental walls down so that you are free to reach me telepathically if need be."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

The seven Saiyans were all placed in their seats just as they began to enter the atmosphere of Planet Kanassa, which at the current time was a misty blue filled area. Out of all of the oncoming intruders, Bardock felt the most uneasy, although he was the one who seemed to be the most poised.

Toma and the others were all well cognizant of the powers that these Kanassans were rumored to possess, though none of them even remotely considered the true dangers behind their powers, undeterred by the explanation from Bardock himself when he briefly went over their powers. They weren't worried like Bardock but also weren't as composed because they were all too anxious to commence this assignment.

"Can you guys imagine the big reward we're going to get when we actually go through and complete this mission?"

Leek's silence breaker was met by looks of satisfaction from all his comrades asides from Bardock, who didn't see just how they were all so confident in the possible completion of this assignment. Could they not realize just how potentially dangerous this could be? Bardock didn't get it, but he was hoping to at least be able to get this completed.

"Besides…" Leek stood up and walked over to Bardock. "If any of us get into trouble, Bardock will be right there to save our asses." He patted the Saiyan on his shoulder. "Right, Bardock?"

The others laughed at Leek's comment. While they tended to tease Bardock at times for somewhat being more considerate than his fellow man, he was really respected because of his actions. Generally, Saiyans never trusted one another in the field of combat so the act of going out of one's way to save their comrade wasn't generally common, although there were rules to the exception.

"That's if I'm in close proximity," Bardock responded.

"Ahh, no need to put on the hard act, Bardock," Selypa Chimed in. "We know you'd save Gine's tail if she was on the other side of the world deep under water if it meant keeping her alive."

Bardock crossed his arms and turned his face away from the others. He did want to render a crisp retort but due to the fact that all their statements were true, he didn't even bother. There were moments like these in which he wished he was completely ice cold to his peers.

But that wasn't him.

**sssshblaam!**

The sounds of the engine in their ship alerted them instantly, having all seven of them standing right up on their feet in reaction to the worrying sound. Before any of them could verbally state that the engine was messed up, their ship had taken a major dive down, to which had all the Saiyans come forward and smash into one another.

The excessive combination of Pumbukin and Totapo's weight had put a dent into their mode of transportation. It didn't take long for the engine to overheat, either.

"They've attacked us!" Taro shouted.

Instead of worrying about the sudden surprise attack, Bardock quickly thought on his feet and blasted a hole through the ship that was big enough to allow him and the others to escape. As if they couldn't catch a break, from the very moment that they managed to exit the ship, they had been greeted with a plethora of energy blasts from below.

Due to the Kanassans naturally being weaker compared to Saiyans, their attacks didn't do anything but scratch the intruders but that was all apart of the plan. Just as Bardock and the others managed to recover in mid-air, the ship right behind them had exploded. A heap of smoke then covered the entire area.

**PIPIPIPIPIPIPIPI**

"Incoming!" Selypa warned.

A dozen Kanassans all charged ahead, generating attacks to fire away in unison.

Using her scouter to detect the location of at least one of them, Selypa merely aimed her hand through the clouds of fumes and fired away. Much to her luck, she managed to hit one but the other 11 were still on their way. Not only that, but the the rest took off as well, rendering the Saiyans a numerical handicap of dozens against only seven.

Leek was the one to take 11 attacks at point blank range, all these individuals attacking him at 11 different areas right before him. Due to having his guard down, Leek paid for it dearly by taking on all their attacks at point blank range. As a result, he could be seen crashing down in a heap of burning smoke, which died down subsequent to his crucial fall.

"Leek!"

Bardock quickly took off for the eleven he had in his sight. They were the ones he had targeted but he had been blindsided by another Kanassan, who kneed him in the gut from below. Just immediately after, he was punched directly in the jaw.

Bardock took the two hits and grabbed one of them by the leg and swung that Kanassan directly into the other. As soon as they had collided, Bardock blasted the two away to hell with a retaliation of his own.

Not able to catch a break, he had been caught in a hold from behind, which left himself open to more attacks.

Bardock wasn't the only one being ganged up on. Toma and the others were dealing with their share of difficulties as they were continuously coming up against a handful of Kanassans that didn't stop attacking them like a group of bloodthirsty mosquitoes.

Far down below Leek had been assumed dead—for he sure as hell looked the part. His armor was in pieces and his scouter cracked. In a small sized crater, his shaky bloody hands had barely gripped the edge of said crater. It was an internal struggle just to pull himself up onto the main surface of Planet Kanassa.

Once he did manage to get back on level ground, the Saiyan took slow, deep breaths. His head was aching and his vision starting to grow blurry. Luckily enough, he was still able to see his comrades fighting up above.

Due to her small and slick frame, Selypa was the one getting the least trouble as she was able to finesse herself out of the grips of the Kanassan soldiers. However, everytime she managed to escape one, she had been grabbed by two to be attacked on the spot. This grew aggravating and started to truly frustrate her.

By this point, the bombardment of Kanassans started to take its toll. The Saiyans were able to take out one or two but the numbers were far too overwhelming. They were quickly getting exhausted at this extremely fast paced fighting and constant strikes they were being pressured to endure.

Leek could see that his comrades would only be able to take so much before they were to be exhausted to the point of execution. This mission needed to be completed somehow—someway.

Once he heard a beep, Leek's questions regarding his scouter's functionality was confirmed. With that established, he was able to go through with his own plan—one that he managed to come up with on the spot. "Ay, all of you!"

They heard Leek through the scouters but none were able to actually respond to him because they were so occupied with the Kanassans ganging up on them. "Whenever I tell you to take off, you do it! Find a place to seclude yourselves until the full moon!"

Judging by how he spoke, Leek was making it all too obvious he had a plan, and some of them had a hunch as to what he planned on doing: something rather out the box as far as a typical Saiyan's mindset goes.

"Not happening!" Toma already knew what Leek had in mind and he wasn't having it. After ramming the back of his head into a Kanassan soldier's face behind him, he punched one in front and elbowed the next that approached him from the side.

Just as Toma was getting into his groove, the Kanassan soldiers had started to drop like flies, one by one. Toolo, who was the one looking over and guiding his men telepathically, had noticed his men up above being attacked by another party. Spotting where the blasts were coming from, Toolo had ordered that more of his men started to attack the gravely injured intruder that was on land.

Warriors that were so focused on Bardock and the others mid-air had just then started to place their focus onto Leek, who they initially assumed to be dead.

When they started flying towards him, Leek gave his comrades the notice. "NOW!" Reacting quickly on his feet, he mustered up the little energy he had left to fire an attack at Toolo and the handful of soldiers on standby so that they wouldn't be able to seek Bardock and the others.

"You heard the man, let's go!" Pumbukin shouted. He was the first to take off and Totapo was the first to follow. Taro himself wasn't far behind either of the two.

"Get your asses on or you're toast!" Taro yelled, referring to Bardock, Selypa, and Toma.

Selypa had the urge to take off with the others but she wanted to stick and fight as well. More than that, she wanted to stick by Toma's side. If he was staying, then so was she. As for Toma, he was merely willing to stick by Bardock's until the very end. He could tell by the look on Bardock's face that he was contemplating on whether or not he wanted to stick around to assist Leek.

In a following split second, Bardock came to the conclusion that he couldn't. He wanted to help out his comrasde but he weighed the consequences. To save his life, Bardock was already aware that Toma and Selypa would stick around and they'd just suffer the same fate. Having more people perish in the attempt of saving one sealed life was idiotic. Bardock had a heart but he also had a brain.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that the smokescreen Leek created so that his comrades could escape. Without hesitation, Bardock took off. No second later than he did, Selypa and Toma were right by him. In a blazing flash of light, all six of the remaining Saiyans were gone.

Just a third of a minute later, the smoke started to clear. By the time that Toolo and his soldiers were no longer distracted, all the Saiyans but the one they managed to gang up on had been out of sight.

Once Leek saw that his comrades shot off to safety, said Saiyan fell flat on his face. His pulse was at an all time low and things weren't looking any better for him at all. He could only mumble incoherent words that only he understood before closing his eyes and taking his final breath.

Leek was dead.

Toolo walked over to the Saiyan's dead body and scrutinized him. Before the intrusion had even started, Toolo had been under the impression that everything would come to fruition within the first and only phase of their battle plans. By attacking the ship during its arrival, they'd ambush the Saiyans and make attempts at killing them as soon as possible. Though it was a good thing for one of them to be dead, Toolo wanted the others gone, too.

"What now?" one of the soldiers asked, waiting for Toolo's next move. "Do we get the commander-in-chief?"

"No." Toolo instantly shut that idea out. At the moment he didn't see the need for getting their commander-in-chief, who didn't see a need to fight unless things were really dire. "Things are actually in our favor as of the current moment." Crouching down, Toolo poked the dead Saiyan's body. Upon closing his eyes, he could hear distant muffled roars in the distance while envisioning the sight of a full moon.

It didn't take long for him to put two and two together. They were going to resume their assault whenever the full moon came upon them. "The true beasts will come out at night," he warned his men.

"So what do we do until then?"

"Spread out. I want 20 soldiers on each quadrant of the planet. If any problem happens to arise on either side, contact me and we'll handle it. Understood?"

"Sir, you're sure we won't need the chief?"

"I'm positive. We have succeeded against the last group of men, who were way stronger than these groups. We have our gifts on our side as well as strategy."

"I wasn't expecting one of them to sacrifice themselves. We've seen that these types of guys don't even care for one another. When the ones we fought in the past were on the brink of death, none of their companions came to their aid. This one really threw me off guard."

"Indeed." Toolo wasn't expecting this either. Had it not been for that unexpected action of sacrifice, then the others would have been dead as well. "As much as I'd love to gain the chief's insight on this, he has the utmost confidence in us. For him to have to come and aid us into battle would display incompetence on our part. We're anything but incompetent, men. And even if we do fail, just remember that as long as the chief is alive, our people will be safe. Our people underground won't have to endure pain. Everything will be fine at the end of the day."

Their duty as the army of Kanassa was to ensure their people's safety. Damage done to buildings and anything else structural could be rebuilt with time but lives could never be taken back. The Kanassans had their values in order and at the very top of their list, they valued life.

* * *

On the other end, Bardock and the others managed to find outer cities that were in the process of being rebuilt. There were still destroyed buildings and some work in progress buildings. Bardock and the others were spread out inside the partially constructed buildings so that they had a place to hide and that there was a sky to look at for when the full moon came out.

"How are we going to escape?" Totapo asked everyone via scouter. "Our mode of transportation is gone."

"We can worry about that after we complete this mission," Toma replied.

Taro, who was sitting alongside Toma, spoke up in regards to the current dilemma. "Freeza Planet 24 is the closest nearby here. I can have have them send us three different ships that occupy two people each."

"Good, I didn't even think of that. Call it in."

"With pleasure."

Taro clicked his scouter and made sure to call in their order. "Requesting a dispatch of three different duo ships—six soldiers stranded on Planet Kanassa; orbiting star 71. Arrival of ships are expected in the span of 10 hours. Over and out."

"Good," Selypa sighed. "We don't have to worry about that anymore."

"Right," Toma agreed. "We should get some rest. We have just under 12 hours until the expected full moon. We need to regain our energy by then."

As did Toma, the other Saiyans had cut their reception as well. Toma then rested his head against the cracked wall behind him and took a deep breath. Just going over the recent course of events, he truly couldn't believe that they had to resort to hiding until the full moon came out. These were not the actions of an upper class warrior. No, this was precisely what low-class soldiers would do. To resort to their Oozaru forms was a sign that their enemies were far too much of a threat for them—truly a shame in his eyes.

"All of that happened pretty fast, eh, Toma?"

Toma's eyes rolled over to Taro and the younger of the two just nodded. "So quick I can't even remember how it all started. Never thought Leek would just up and give his life like that so we could keep breathing." Toma didn't understand it: how could one be so selfless? Generally, this was looked at a sign of weakness but even Bardock, one of the toughest people he knew, had a knack for saving whenever he could. It was all too conflicting for him. Comparing the lessons he had been verbally taught by grown Saiyan soldiers as a young combatant and comparing those lessons to his personal observations throughout his tenure as a Saiyan soldier left him befuddled.

"I always figured Bardock would be the one to go out like that," Taro continued. "Hmph. Bardock must have rubbed off on him."

"Probably. I could never see myself doing something like that. I'll fight beside someone but I won't give up my life for them. That's just stupid."

Taro chuckled. "I used to think the same and I still do to some extent, but once you get older, you'll realize that warriors like those are the ones who should be respected the most. I couldn't do it either but only the most brave soldiers can go out in such a way."

 _"Or the most foolish,"_  Toma thought to himself.

Silence had temporarily fell between the two. In recent years Toma and Taro had never been on the battlefield together and this was the first time in a good while that they had fought side by side. Despite that, the two were never really close once Toma started fighting out on the frontlines. Hell, Toma was closer with Bardock than Taro. Still, the two had a genuine respect for one another. "You couldn't even do it for your little ole' brother, huh?"

Such a question out of leftfield took Taro out of his current element. Now he really had to think: would he? He respected his brother but the thought of sacrificing his life to keep Toma protected never occurred to him. Upon thinking about it for the moment, he just shook his head. "Nah, of course not. You're a grown ass man now so you should be able to take care of yourself."

This elicited a chuckle from Toma, who started thinking about the dilemma they were in just moments ago. Taro was struggling just as much as he was against those Kanassans but Toma decided to not reflect back on that. "Yeah, I expected you to respond like that."

Just a few ten yards away from them, Bardock and Selypa were chilling at their respective hiding spots. "I could tell you really wanted to jump in and help him," Selypa brought up.

Ever since that had taken place, Bardock didn't even think about it. He figured that it would be best to move on but Selypa just had to bring it up, didn't she? "Yes, but I made the right decision. I'm not glad he's dead but I'm glad I did what was best."

"Why didn't you, though?" She was willing to fight if need be, even if she were to meet the same fate as Leek. She could tell Bardock had a deep instinctual urge to jump in but for the life of her, she didn't comprehend why he fought against that feeling.

"Because that'd just result in us dying. Didn't you consider that? Dying would defeat the very purpose behind his selfless action so I made sure his death didn't go in vain. Do you understand?"

Selypa got the message. "Yeah, makes sense, Bardock."

"Why did you stick around?" he asked her. "You had the option to take off just like Taro and the other two but you stuck by Toma and I."

Selypa quickly went silent and had her eyes veer off to the side. Bardock quickly noted the silence and Selypa's discomfort that came along with it. With the time he was given to think to himself, he backtracked a bit in his head. Going by his own motivations, Bardock stood there questioning himself whether or not he should have jumped in to save Leek. He was already well aware that Toma stuck by his side because of the fact that they were tight. No matter what, Toma was going to fight by him on the battlefield and Bardock knew this.

As for Selypa? Well she didn't stick around for him, that's for damn sure. Throughout their conquests together, Bardock and Selypa merely interacted with one another casually and were never truly close. Sure, there was a mutual respect but there was absolutely nothing more to it between them. The only logical explanation would have to be. . .

Toma.

Just as if he had an epiphany, Bardock finally realized.

"Oh."

Selypa caught Bardock's sudden change in facial expression and grew curious. "Something the matter?"

Bardock closed his eyes and just grinned. "I shoulda known. You and Toma, huh?"

"Me and Toma, what?"

"You two have feelings for one another."

Selypa instantly got hot in the face. Folding her arms, the female Saiyan turned her head and scoffed. "I don't know about Toma but I do feel...something." She looked back to Bardock. "I don't know if you could call it feelings."

"Hah. Why am I surprised?"

"But I shouldn't be feeling these things at all," Selypa said, her tone of voice revealing frustration. "I'm a Saiyan warrior through and through, nothing more and nothing less. To have him wandering in my head all the time is nothing but a distraction—holding me back from becoming the strongest I can be."

"You shouldn't say that."

"Why not? Look at how soft you're becoming, Bardock."

"Despite how  _soft_  you guys continue to say I'm getting, once I accepted my feelings toward Gine and my children, I've actually felt stronger. I know now that strength isn't only in raw force but emotions as well. To care for someone makes you have something to lose. To have something to lose makes you fight harder to never leave it behind."

Selypa smacked her lips. "Save all the peachy bullcrap for yourself, Bardock. There was a point in time where you didn't even give a damn about Raditz but now all of a sudden you do?"

"I always did," he admitted, "but I was never honest with myself. I understand how you feel—I really do. You think to care for someone makes you weak but it's the total opposite. It makes you stronger and it makes you feel alive when you're off the battlefield. I know you're conflicted but once you can be honest with yourself, you'll come to a resolution."

"Whatever you say. Before you know it, you'll be preaching on about how retirement from battle is the true Saiyan way."

"Ha, don't make me laugh. I'm going to keep fighting until my body won't let me anymore. When my hair gets old and grey, I'll be out here. I don't know about the rest of you, though."

Selypa scoffed with a playful grin. "I'll hold you up to that, Bardock."

* * *

With the night finally rearing itself onto the world of Planet Kanassa, the deciding moments of the fate of the Saiyans and the Kanassans were drawing closer and closer. The skies were darkening and it was only a matter of time before the full moon let its presence be known to everyone.

As Toolo ordered, 20 men had been assigned to one of the four separate quadrants of the entire planet. Of one of the four groups, the ones in the Southern quadrant were walking on foot, looking over their shoulder every thirty seconds. They flew for the first few hours but in the effort to preserve energy, they began walking the rest of the way.

These were the ones who were entering one of the cities that had been under the process of reconstruction. Very little were they aware of the fact that their enemies had been hiding in plain sight.

"It's a possibility that they could be around here, Natu."

Natu was in charge of these group of men, being the strongest one of them all. Even though he was a respected common soldier, he wasn't anywhere near the strength of the weakest Saiyan currently pillaging their world. They relied on their strategy and strength in numbers to prevail but now there were only twenty of them.

Before, there were over 80 attacking seven Saiyans all at once, which made it far too hard for the Saiyans to react at all.

But now with 20?

Easy work.

"This is true. Everyone, go check the buildings."

Just as soon as he made the order, the Saiyan warriors had made their presence known. Just minutes before they were even in close proximity, their scouters had detected 20 men coming. They knew that they could handle the group. By using the element of surprise, they now had the upper hand.

In the blink of an eye, 12 of their men had been dropped off like flies—all with holes in their stomach. Before even three seconds could pass, only 8 of them remained on the field, anxious and utterly astounded.

"IT'S THEM!"

The Kanassan soldier to announce the Saiyans' presence had been kicked directly in the throat by Selypa, who made sure to end his life with that one strike.

Natu rushed in for the female Saiyan, though he didn't catch Totapo, who was flying from the side and rammed into him. Natu went sliding through the ground and even bounced up and down like a rock skipping on water. Pumbukin zoomed in on Natu, kicked him off, and blasted him to oblivion.

Seeing two of the Kanassan soldiers run in on Pumbukin from behind, Taro and Toma both took initiative and got one of their own. Subsequent to Natu's death, there were only six remaining, meaning that the Saiyans could all target one particular person and make easy work of them.

Totapo picked up one of the few remaining and held the man up and above his head. The chilling grunts of pain he made as he was being pressed against the top of the Saiyan's head was like a calming tune to his ears.

Once Totapo heard a snap from the body, he let the man drop dead.

Bardock was going at it one on one with one of his enemies and was actually found this relieving. Being swift and fluid throughout his movements, the low-class Saiyan ducked under a swinging kick and retaliated by pouncing up. Just as soon as the Kanassan came face to face with the Saiyan, his jaw was broken by a devastating blow from Bardock's knee that connected with his chin.

Toma and Taro had dropped their victims once they had finished choking them to death.

Pumbukin, on the other hand, was literally eating his opponent's flesh, which rendered the Kanassan a slow and agonizing death. The meat provided as something to chew on as the blood that came with it was something to quench his insatiable thirst for carnage.

As for Selypa...she had clawed the very last one in the face until his eyes were no more, her hands flying at impeccable speeds. After blinding the man, she grabbed him by the throat and picked the soldier up off the ground. Being firm with her grip, Selypa rejoiced in the choking sounds of the Kanassan, which she ended by rendering him a painful hole through the chest.

All of this took place in less than 10 seconds. Though even still, as soon as the Kanassans had been alerted, they were definite when it came to warning the others. Sure, twenty may have been taken out easily but well over 60 soldiers remained and were all on their way, so it wouldn't be beneficial for the Saiyans to take them all at once.

Since they had made quick work of these group of weaklings, the Saiyans had time. Looking up into the sky, Toma watched as the moon slowly revealed all of its shape. While he still had control of himself for the time being, he removed his scouter and tossed it over to the side. "Thing's probably gonna get crushed anyway," he said softly.

He and everyone else had a high sensation of adrenaline traversing through their veins just moments before looking under the full moon. Once their eyes finally locked with it, they were stuck in an enigmatic trance.

Something about the moon was just hypnotizing to the eye of a Saiyan that still had their monkey-like tail. The hairs all over their body started to stand on end and they could hear their heart pounding against their chest as if it was trying to escape their body.

And from here, their metamorphosis commenced. The normal skin that was once smooth had grown fur all over as if they were pure animals. The totality of their eyes changed into a red color and their bodies began to grow. The aching pains that came over their body as it stretched out ot grow elicited uncomfortable grunts from each and every one of them. As they developed more and more into gigantic wild beasts, the less sanity they had.

Toolo and the others were rushing as quickly as they could to make it to the last location that they felt the men ordered to guard the southern quadrant.

As Toolo and the others got closer, distinct booming noises could be felt. The ground's shaking was as if a quake overcame their world. Toolo was the first to hear and recognize these roars-the same roars from his vision.

"It's...here."

Just after a few more minutes of flying as quickly as possible, Toolo and the others had came across a mesmerizing sight: six different boisterous beasts all standing at approximately one hundred feet, picking up various different buildings and tossing them all over. Anything in sight was being blown to bits and crushed.

Despite their lack of sanity, the Oozarus would not attack one another. It was as if their subconscious was aware that they were all on the same task: to wreak havoc.

"Unbelievable…" Toolo mumbled at the breath.

"We...we must get the Commander-in-Chief."

"NO!" Toolo yelled. He still believed that he and the current men could take on these beasts by themselves. Regardless of how bleak the situation seemed, he did not lose his faith. He wanted to uphold his reputation for Thon and their leader. "We can take them on, men! They're bigger and slower now: easy targets for us to dispatch of! We just need to rely on teamwork and proper coordination!"

As all sixty of them hovered in the skies, it didn't take long before at least one of them had been spotted from afar.

Totapo was the one to notice and he signalled that they had guests by roaring loudly and pounding his chest. The others all turned around and looked to where Totapo had been looking. At once, the six beasts roared, cracking the ground beneath them.

"ATTACK!"

Toolo made sure he and his men kept their distanced as they blasted the apes.

To the beasts, their attacks had been nothing more than a mere nuisance. Now extremely agitated, all of them opened their mouths and unleashed humongous sized waves of energy—all big enough to swallow entire civilizations.

Toolo was the first to react by rocketing higher into the sky, as an effort to avoid the attacks coming at them. Despite being able to save himself, many of his men had been taken out at once. Right before his eyes, Toolo watched as the number of men had been deduced to only a handful.

"H-How?" In disbelief at what was transpiring before him, Toolo was now becoming extremely worried. Just a split moment passes and all the men he fought and trained with were disintegrated without difficulty. As for the few remaining, they were all shaking in their clothes.

"Toolo, how can we survive this? If we don't just retreat and wait until the chief arrives, we're dead!"

"But we can't flee!" Toolo responded.

He truly had no idea at all of what to do. He had pride just like any other soldier and his honor as a Kanassan warrior wouldn't let him just leave and have them continue wreaking havoc on their world, destroying the things that his people worked so hard to build up. He had a duty to protect his kind and he was going to do it by any means. If it meant that he had to jump into the fire itself and get charred, then so be it.

"I'm not fleeing," Toolo mumbled. "I'm not fleeing..."

Going against the instinct of survival, Toolo forced himself to rush at all of the Oozarus. He could only think about his wife and children as he flew toward death, albeit at the same time, he was thinking about the very same people he was going to be taking himself from.

"Magoru...Chamichi...I'll see you at the door."

One last battlecry from this Kanassan soldier rang through the skies of Planet Kanassa.

* * *

"Bastards didn't even stand a chance once we transformed, hahahaha!"

After one entire night of wreaking havoc under a full moon, the Saiyans came back to their senses once the following morning had arrived. To them, spending a whole night as Oozarus was like getting a good night's sleep. They had absolutely no recollection of what transpired but upon seeing that the job was supposedly done, none of them complained.

All six of the Saiyans sat nearby their newly sent ships, all in a large crater in which they sat. After everything appeared to be finished, Bardock and co. were under the impression that all of the Kanassans had been dealt with, albeit all were incognizant of the fact that there were more—many more. If they were aware of the underground vaults and bunkers that had been set for the normal citizens of Kanassa, then the group would have taken care of them as well. However since they didn't know—out of sight, out of mind.

"You act like us transforming is a good thing," Toma blurted out toward Taro, who was actually happy that they still managed to get the job done. "Us having to rely on the full moon is an embarrassment. It should only be used as a last resort. The people we just faced were all nothing but weaklings but we still had to resort to transforming."

"Agreed," Pumbukin sided with Toma.

"But you all forget that mid-class warriors have failed to fight these people, the same people who are rumored to have psychic powers. If not for Leek, we'd all be dead by now. We shouldn't take shame in having to transform because they used strategy as a way to fend us off. Because of the fact that they all used their strength in numbers as well as their natural gifts, it's a miracle we're not dead at all. We ought to be proud that we've succeeded in missions that even higher ranking solders have failed."

While he didn't open his mouth all too much, Totapo often spoke truthfully—looking at the more logical side of things. He truly did understand Toma's viewpoint but couldn't he just take pride in the fact that they bested a race of people that had even taken care of mid-class and some of Freeza's higher ranked men? Personally, Totapo thought they were going to die from the moment that they took on this mission but he was very glad to have been proven wrong.

Subsequent to transforming under the full moon, the Saiyans had outgrew their scouters, which all fell to the ground during the midst of their transformation. As they rampaged around through the night, they had steered far away and more than likely crushed them in the process. Unfortunately, the mercenaries hadn't been given a new batch of scouters in their newly distpatched ships so they were stuck without them until they got them from either home or a nearby Freeza Planet. Because of this, they didn't get an alert on the looming Kanassan that slowly crept up on them.

The light mood had been killed from the very moment that Pumbukin was grabbed from behind and had three sharp nails dug into his chubby cheek. Not wanting to let his face get carved up, Pumbukin got up on his feet, rammed the back of his head into his attacker's face, and poked his butt out to free himself. Pumbukin hopped up, turned around, and looked over in hopes he could finish him off though was left in bewilderment upon not seeing anyone there.

"What the hell!?"

In an instant, all of the other Saiyans had jumped up at once, on the offensive. Although what just happened took place extremely fast, the Saiyans knew for sure that it had to be a Kanassan.

"You okay, Pumbukin?" Bardock asked him.

Pumbukin could be seen very displeased, upset at the fact that his clean face now had an unwanted scar—a few in fact. "I'm fine," he growled. "I want to get that son of a bitch."

"I'm right here."

Thon watched all six of them turn around and lay eyes on him. Out of the six that did turn, only three attacks came his way, but he was quick enough to move out of the way at the perfect moment. Not wasting any time, he rushed in for Bardock and punched the Saiyan so hard that he came off his feet and crashed into Totapo. Knowing what Toma's next move happened to be, he leaned to the side, span around, elbowed him in the back of the neck, and kicked the incoming Selypa away. After parrying an energy attack from Pumbukin and Taro, Thon hopped off his back foot, rendered the fat Saiyan a roundhouse kick that sent him on the ground, ducked under a swipe from Taro and came back up with a vicious uppercut to the chin. All six of them had been shamelessly put down on their backs with legitimate ease.

"On my honor, all of you will pay for your actions. The lives taken away last night may be gone but their spirits confide in me to avenge them." Thon placed his right hand above his head and positioned his left just by his waist, putting his battle stance on display. The Saiyans all got up at the same time, a bit taken aback that a random Kanassan managed to come out of nowhere and fend them off by himself. Before, the Saiyans were under the impression that they could take down the Kanassans in small numbers but this guy—something was different about him.

"H-How in the hell did he manage to do all that!?" Selypa asked.

"God dammit, we need our scouters," Pumbukin scowled. Unable to read this person's power-level, none of them knew exactly where they stood against this guy, and that was worrying. To be tested like this without a scouter to spot his exact power gave Pumbukin and the others that this guy was far superior to not only his own peers, but perhaps the Saiyans even.

"To hell with scouters!" Bardock roared. Dashing passed Pumbukin and the others, he started to fight Thon one on one. The commander-in-chief blocked all of the Saiyan's mixed style of punches of kicks with the palm of his hands—and did so gracefully. Side-stepping Bardock, who lost his footing, Thon kneed the low-class Saiyan in the chest and karate chopped him in the upper-back. Knowing he still had to wonder about those in his surroundings, Thon ducked under both Selypa and Toma who came at him from behind, then elbowed the two in their mid-section before grabbing them by the arms and flipping them violently on their backs. Hopping away from the Saiyans in front of them, Thon beckoned the others to attack.

Pumbukin, Toma, and Taro all shot forth and started their onslaught of attacks in unison. The three Saiyans were all doing their best to land a strike, though to no avail. Thon let himself slip to the side, feigning an accidental fall. Just when the three thought they had something over him, Thon placed his left hand on the ground and used his right leg to sweep them all onto their backs. Before he could finish the three off with an energy attack, Bardock rushed at him yet again, this time managing to land a solid blow to the face.

The punch didn't do anything to Thon, who responded with an even harder strike for the cheek. Bardock spat out a bit of blood and stumbled back, though he maintained balance. He locked eyes with Thon and growled before firing a wave of ki toward him at point-blank range. Thon was already three steps ahead and jumped right over it just in time so he could retaliate with a ki attack of his own, which sent Bardock sliding viciously through the ground, with him and his armor taking a lot of damage in the process.

Toma and Selypa stood side by side with their arms held out, combining their powers to hopefully take this fool out. Thon mirrored their actions and fired a blast at them from the moment they did. Despite the two Saiyans having an advantage over him in numbers, Thon overpowered them easily and had his attack envelop their entire being. Though not dead, they, like Bardock, took an insane amount of damage.

Totapo made an attempt to sneak up on Thon from behind but his wrist had been grabbed quicker than Thon even let on. The Kanassan, while holding onto him, spun around Totapo and placed his hand directly against his back. With no mercy, he gave the big, tall Saiyan a hot, scorching wave of ki. Totapo's face was going through the dirt for hundreds of yards away before suddenly coming to a stop and losing his consciousness.

"All of your attempts are futile. No matter what you do, you'll never be able to defeat me. I have the capabilities of reading the preemptive thoughts that run through your mind. No matter what, I'll always be one step ahead."

"Stop bluffing!" Taro yelled.

"I'm not." Thon closed his eyes. Just to show off his true skills as a trained Kanassan warrior, Thon shot passed Taro and then stopped directly behind him. Taro wasn't even given any chances to react since he received a chop to a pressure point directly on his neck. It wasn't meant to knock him out, but instead, temporarily paralyze him. Thon grabbed Taro's hand, turned him around, and reeled the Saiyan in before punching him in the face. Following this, he started to move faster than what any of the others could even see and initiated his brutal combo of punches. Each hit left either a crack in the Saiyan's armor or a potentially broken bone.

Knowing that someone was coming at him from behind, Thon turned around to kick Pumbukin in the face. He got a hold of his big leg and swung him around. After knocking Taro over with Pumbukin, he threw him into Bardock and blasted both of the Saiyans at once.

In the span of 30 seconds—not even—all six of the Saiyans were down yet again, this time with four of them unconscious. Pumbukin, Totapo, Toma, and Bardock were officially out for the count. Seeing how everything was perfectly set up for him at this current moment, he saw no better opportunity.

_Now is the perfect time to end this for good._

Selypa slowly got back up on her feet and locked eyes with Thon. The Kanassan showed no signs of fear and didn't leave any openings for Selypa to attack at either. By his body language, she could tell he wanted to end their bout soon, so his next hits would be intentionally lethal. Although stronger than her, he couldn't just finish her off by initiating contact. Instead, he wished for her to go on the offensive so that he could read her movements, find a  _fatal_ weakpoint, and just finish her off on the spot.

"You say you can read minds?" she asked through fits of heavy breaths.

"Yes," Thon responded. "You're thinking about weird, ugly looking creatures. Funny you think of such a peculiar thing in your final moments but whatever helps you cope."

_Green things? He means cultivars!_

Taro had immediately realized what he was referring to. While Selypa may have been under the impression that she could utilize them at the current moment, such a thing was impossible at the moment given that she no longer had them. He was right behind Thon, who seemed to be far too focused on reading Selypa's thoughts. Taking advantage, Taro carefully took out a plethora of green bottles as slowly as he could in order to avoid unwanted detection.

Looking on, Selypa's tail twitched upon realizing that Taro had taken all of her bottles! In order to confirm that she no longer had the cultivar bottles that she won from a card game on Planet Vegeta, Selypa dug inside her armored chestplate. Upon feeling absolutely nothing, she then came to the irrefutable conclusion that Taro had took her rightful earnings.

Upon reading her thoughts, Thon realized that the Saiyan behind him had something planned. Selypa rushed in on Thon and rendered him an upward kick prior to firing off a myriad of energy balls as a form of distraction and as a way to stall so that Taro could plant all of the Saibaimen. After firing off the many ki attacks, Selypa charged a bright pink ball of ki and fired it as an effort to send Thon away even further. Given that she managed to catch him off guard, her intentions in increasing distance seemed to result as a success.

Taro wasted no time in poking countless holes into the soil of Planet Kanassa. Helping him out, Selypa started to fire off very small and thin energy attacks at the ground that were form the holes needed for Taro to grow the cultivars. Within the first five seconds, they got done poking all the holes and then started dumping all the Saibaimen inside them prior to covering them up.

"How in the hell did you take my cultivars?" Selypa asked as she began to finish up on the last few. She already had a clue of what Taro had did but she wanted to hear it from the horse's mouth. Taro had no shame in whatever he did so the answer to her question would undoubtedly be truthful.

Taro looked back up to Selypa and grinned. "I fondled you while you were sleep and felt the bottles there. Never thought me taking them away would come in handy!"

Selypa's face got hot red. "Are you serious!?" she fumed.

"Selypa!" Taro grabbed the woman by her arms, now serious. Some of them had just started to grow and the numbers only continued to build up more and more. Time was ticking and Taro had to make sure his plan had went through. "By the time he gets back here, I should have at least over 30 of these things ready to battle. In the meantime, I need you and the others out of here!" Taro figured that since this guy was capable of reading his opponent's next movements by poking inside their mind, then he wouldn't be very successful against the Saibaimen—especially if there's over 100 coming toward him at once.

"But..."

"But nothing," he interrupted her. Turning around, Taro could see the Kanassan flying at them from afar. "We don't got much time! C'mon!"

Acting with haste, Selypa and Taro both grabbed two people and carried them into a ship. Taro placed Totapo and Pumbukin in a duo ship prior to setting the coordinates for Freeza Planet 24. "Make sure you head over to Freeza Planet 24," he told her. "It's the closest base from here and over there, all of you can rejuvenate and get some fresh equipment."

For the hell of it, Selypa didn't want to leave. From the very start, she had this insane urge to keep fighting to the end, though she knew the importance of using her head as well. If her, Taro, and all the other Saibaimen worked together as one, then chances are, they'd most definitely win, though it seemed to her that Taro had another idea in mind.

"Already done," she said, after putting Bardock in a ship by himself. Still over her shoulders was the unconscious Toma, who she planned on travelling back with. Totapo, Pumbukin, and Bardock were all already set off and all that remained was her ship.

Raising his hand, Taro had started to reach for his brother but quickly pulled his hand away, making an effort to not show any signs of weakness. Turning around, he spotted Thon, who was just seconds from touching land within the vicinity. "If my brother asks what happened, tell him that I saved his ass." Looking over his shoulder for a split second, he then smiled. Taro never paid much attention to Toma growing up despite the fact that Toma looked up to him. As he grew older, the two grew apart, despite being on the same squad for many years. Taro just hoped that this simple action would have Toma realize that he did give some shit about him.

Selypa just nodded before heading into the duo ship. She noted the sadness on his face but she did her best to act like she didn't even notice. Any other time, she'd ridicule him for being so vulnerable but there was a time and place for everything. Not objecting to Taro's plan at all, she hopped inside the ship with the set coordinates and took off as soon as the door came to a close.

After arriving back into the vicinity, Thon looked up in the sky and aimed his hands for the other ships that were already on the verge of taking off into space.

Taro rushed in at Thon and rammed himself into the man's body. He and the dozens of other Saibaimen all closed in on the Kanassan, making an effort to end him completely.

Selypa watched from above as Taro made his best effort to hold Thon back, though to no avail. The Saiyan was getting ruthlessly beat on and if not for the Saibaimen constantly distracting Thon every few seconds, then Taro would be dead. Looking on just before the ship shot out of the atmosphere, Selypa saw all the Saibaimen group together with Thon and Taro in the mix, all shining brightly. Though she didn't see the explosion, she could feel the shockwave within her ship.

Now it seemed...the mission did get done.

"So long, Taro."


	8. One Step Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Selypa and Toma figure things out. King Vegeta makes an announcement. Kakarot becomes acquainted with a distant relative.

**Dragon Ball Governed:**

**Chapter 8**

**"One Step Forward"**

* * *

Like any hard working soldier, one expected to come back to a nice, well made meal after days and weeks of being away and surviving off rations and aliens. The Saiyan female Selypa was no exception. In the dining hall, she could be seen stuffing her face with rich meals and drowning them all down her stomach with ice cold watter bottled in an insulated cup. Of all the edible material she digested, most of the food consisted of dairy—ice cream to be exact.

Any Saiyan would be in the present moment as they savored their fine, delicious meals, but the woman wasn't able to get her mind off her two most recent lost comrades: the insouciant Leek and salacious Taro. Through all her years of combat, Selypa had never witnessed a fellow Saiyan successfully risk their own lives just so that their companions could survive and complete a mission. That threw her in for a loop, which was why she ate rather slower than usual. She just couldn't stop thinking about it.

_Saiyans don't sacrifice themselves._

Ever since she took step on her first off world mission, Selypa stood by this ideology; it was every man for himself. Also through observing the actions of all her comrades—except Bardock—none of them ever put their life on the line. She didn't look at sacrifices as something to be looked down upon but it sure as hell wasn't their custom. What type of Saiyan would prevent themselves from living on so that they can continue a life of combat?

_A fool?_

_A nobleman?_

She wasn't too sure now.

However, if she were to have the choice of saving someone's life at the cost of her own...

_would she? Especially if it was someone she cared about?_

The woman just shook her head and continued to eat. Now wasn't the time to start going soft.

"Well, look at who's here, hehehe!"

Selypa looked over to the dining hall entrance, where Totapo and Pumbukin were standing side by side. "About time you two got out." She downed a half carton of melting ice cream and slammed the carton down on the table. "Bardock and Toma out, too?"

"Nah," Pumbukin sat next to her and snapped his fingers above his head, signalling the local workers for expected service. "Doctor said Bardock is gonna be out in a little bit, though."

"Where's Taro?" Totapo asked. He had no idea what transpired subsequent to being knocked out. To not see Taro in the rejuvenation chamber nor the dining room after a mission made him think a bit about what possibly could have happened. Regardless, he still wanted confirmation regarding his comrade's fate before jumping to any conclusions.

Selypa remained quiet.

The two noticed her silence as a sign of Taro's unfortunate passing. Totapo already understood and lowered his head to pay respects quietly. Pumbukin, on the other hand, rubbed his scarred cheek. He was disappointed but the fact didn't disturb him. Saiyans died in combat everyday so it wasn't of any surprise to him that death managed to creep up on somebody close to him. "Huh. Bummer that we needed to lose two people just to make it out of that dump alive."

"Really is," Selypa agreed.

"But eh," Pumbukin shrugged his shoulders. "Loss is to be expected. It was only a matter of time that one of us was to fall in combat. Just glad it wasn't me."

_I doubt that the others think the same._

Selypa removed herself from the area that she sat in, giving more space to Totapo and Pumbukin. The two didn't do anything but fill up the long rectangular dining tables with empty bowls, plates, and cups as they were being served soon after Selypa's leave.

By the time Selypa made it into the medical room, Bardock was already getting dressed. Said Saiyan noticed Selypa's presence solely by spotting her colored boots through his peripheral vision. Upon putting on his wristbands—having completely dressed himself—he was the first to break the ice.

"Taro's gone, isn't he?"

Selypa folded her arms as she leaned against the cold, metallic wall behind her, letting out a deep sigh. "Yes. My only use was being a distraction, Bardock. He used all my Saibaimen and had been caught up in an explosion with that fish faced creep. I just know that whatever place Taro is headed, that bastard is gone with him."

Bardock's brow quirked. Was that the sound of frustration coming from her voice? Did she feel bad for this?

_Very unlike her._

"There's one thing you shouldn't forget," Bardock said as he approached the medical room's only exit, their shoulders parallel to one another. "Those people we slaughtered  _have all the reason_  to be mad. We showed up, took their lives away from them, killed their people. We went in to do our job and they did what they could to defend themselves. It stands to reason why they'd do their best to kill us. I understand if you're upset, but we're not the ones who should be mad what came of this. If you're going to hold anyone accountable, then it's on us."

Selypa received a pat on the shoulder from her comrade prior to him making his exit, headed for the dining hall to eat. The female's eyes motioned off to the corner of the room, targeted directly at the doctor, who solemnly nodded in approval with Bardock's words.

"He has a point."

_**BLEEP** _

Toma was ready to be taken out, being the last one brought to one hundred percent.

As the hatch opened with Toma's eyes, Selypa saw the frown over the deeply tanned man's face. He looked as if he already knew what transpired in those very last moments during their assignment on Kanassa, despite Toma himself being knocked out in said moments.

"Good to see you're still alive, Toma," Selypa greeted with a soft smile.

Usually, seeing Selypa render him anything that was remotely considered a smile would influence Toma to mirror her facial expression. But as for this time, it didn't manage to work. Stepping out the tank without any clothing, Toma's eyes darted all over the room, making it obvious that he was looking for his new set of attire.

"Clothes, doctor?"

"Ah, right over here!" He patted the counter that was directly behind him.

Toma walked over and pushed the doctor aside to get to his clothes, nearly knocking the man over. "Did any of you make the report here about Kanassa yet?"

"No," Selypa responded. "I thought that we could do that after you came back to the light."

"Good that you haven't yet. We're going to report this mission directly to the King himself."

"Really? Why's that?"

"Kanassa is a mission that even past warriors haven't been able to overcome. And since we survived, we now know why it is that they weren't able to survive it. If we go and tell the King of our success, then that enough should earn us all a promotion to mid-class status."

Selypa tapped at her bottom lip with her finger, pondering on the man's words. Toma did indeed make a good point. The King was aware of Kanassa not being some ordinary mission, so for a group of low-level warriors to come directly to him and announce their success there would indeed make the King have second thoughts, perhaps even to the point of promoting them. "Genius. It's nice to see that drive to aim higher hasn't died with you yet, Toma."

"Hm." Toma wrapped his torn, bloodied bandana around his arm. "But it sure has with Taro."

"So you did know..."

After putting his green scouter on, Toma started to walk his way over to the exit. "Of course. I overheard you and Bardock talking. We don't sleep the entire time that we're inside the tank, Selypa. I know exactly what happened to him."

"I'm sor-"

"And it's pathetic," Toma cut her off. "No Saiyan would sacrifice their own life just so some other low-levels would live, even if one of them happen to be their own brother." His eyes narrowed.

Selypa followed Toma from behind and took a left as he did, making their way back to the landing site—opposite direction of where the dining hall was located. "How is it pathetic? That's a thing that most could never bring themselves to do, Toma; not even I could give up my own life for most people."

"Most people," Toma repeated her last words. "But you would for someone, huh?" Noting her quietness, Toma took Selypa's following silence as a verbal checkmate. "Exactly."

"So, what's bad about it? We still got the job done. That's all that matters to you, isn't it?"

Toma took a deep breath and just kept quiet on the rest of the way back toward their ship. During those moments on Planet Kanassa when they waited for the moon to make its appearance, Toma vividly recalled the specific words shared from his brother to him.

_"I used to think the same and I still do to some extent, but once you get older, you'll realize that warriors like those are the ones who should be respected the most."_

What was so respectable about it?

A Saiyan who gives up his life is a Saiyan who dies, and goes to otherworld, never being able to continue to fight and grow stronger. What purpose did it serve the individual? Since when did Saiyans become caring for others? Saiyans weren't noble men. They were mere mercenaries who survived by doing what they do best: fight.

Selypa noticed that Toma's eyes started to flutter—involuntarily—as if he had something in his eye.

The closer they got to their ship, the more Toma looked back on his dead brother's words.

_I couldn't do either but only the most brave soldiers go out in such a way._

And yet he did anyway. That statement from Taro had been followed up by a question from Toma, who asked if Taro would save him if it meant his life. Of course, as expected, Taro said no. Yet it only became apparent to him that it was a lie.

_Why lie, Taro? To save yourself from a bit of embarrassment? If you were honest, I'd at least expect it._

Taro died a soldier who no longer looked forward to achieving the next step in Saiyan society. He gave up on being promoted and saw no purpose to it anymore, but Toma never gave up. He still hoped to become one of the handful of noble figures amongst his Saiyan people. To grow from a lower-class warrior who would be seen as nothing into a noble soldier amongst the highest ranking Saiyans was the best it could get for any non-royal individual.

_Did Taro do that so I can achieve my goal?_

_No, he wouldn't._

By the time that Toma and Selypa entered the middle section of the ship, behind the pilot area and in front of sleeping quarters, Toma sat down right on the floor, head down with knees up and back against the white walls, visibly conflicted.

"Toma?"

He didn't look back up to her. Scrutinizing his face as he kept with his hung head, Selypa noticed a few tears fall down from the man's face and onto the floor. Her eyes widened in absolute surprise.

_Was he crying?_

The sight of any grown Saiyan soldier crying would elicit laughter from the casual Saiyan peer, hell, even Selypa herself.

But this was different.

This was Toma, a man that she felt herself grow close to throughout their times of combat together. She couldn't help but feel empathy. For the first time in her life she was feeling bad for someone.

"Toma…" she lowered herself near him.

Selypa moved his head with her fingers touching the tip of his well defined chin. When they locked eyes, she got to see his red and teary face. He looked like a lost child. It became apparent to her that he was just shoving down the feelings he's had for his brother the entire time.

"How could Taro do such a thing?" he scowled. "If the fool would have stayed home, he'd still be alive right now."

"If that  _fool_ stayed home, we wouldn't be alive right now, Toma. Maybe that was his purpose: to not only fight, but shorten his own life to let you fight longer. He wanted it for all of us."

Toma let out a deep breath with tightly closed eyes. In an effort to regain his composure, he soon opened them back up and made eye contact with her. "Promise me that you won't do the same."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Don't be a fool like my brother. My father nor mother cared for us, so we didn't give a rat's ass about them either. All I had was Taro. Once he introduced me to Bardock, it all fell into place for me from then on. Bardock, Totapo, Pumbukin,  _ **you**_. You four are the only ones I have now. _"_  He firmly placed his soft hands behind Selypa's neck. "Promise me that?"

Selypa's heart rate began to rise, stimulating the current emotional sensations that she rarely ever felt. "Anything for you,  _tough guy,_ " she responded in a titilating fashion.

Toma laughed at Selypa's tough guy comment, finally putting a smile on his face since leaving the healing chamber. It was only a matter of time before she managed to put him in an uplifting mood yet again. Once the laughter that came from both of them had died down, Toma and Selypa remained silent, their faces just mere inches away from one another—so close that they could feel their warm breaths mixing before touching the other's skin.

The smell emanating from his female comrade was enticing, like never before. Air was typically cool but the warm feeling that travelled through their bodies elicitied a chilling yet cozy line of energy to go down their spines, which ultimately had them naturally remove their tails from around their waist.

Toma and Selypa's tails wagged from side to side in near perfect synchronization, prior to them gradually coming together. With their tails firmly wrapped around one another, the instinctual feeling just kicked in. They broke their hardened eye contact by closing their eyes as their lips softly came together.

This feeling was far different than what they were used to.

And they liked it.

Outside on the landing site, three Saiyans with full stomachs all made their way back to the ship that they decided to go in all together. Since Toma decided to not report their assignment there, Bardock merely assumed that they were going to do that once they got back home. They didn't see Selypa or Toma in the healing chamber so they knew that there was only one other place they could be.

As the entrance to the ship opened, Bardock, Totapo, and Pumbukin all laid their eyes upon a sight that they wish they never laid their eyes on.

Pumbukin, shocked at the intimacy between Toma and Selypa, fell over on his back—anime style. Bardock wasn't at the very least surprised but in the middle of the ship? Really? They could have taken this in the back!

"This is gonna be a silent trip back home," Totapo mumbled, scratching his head.

Selypa and Toma kept on as if their comrades weren't even there. As these two were acting on their deep buried feelings for one another for the first time, Bardock then connected this to the back room that was placed in the ship.

"I really doubt that, Totapo..."

* * *

"And that's how it all went down, sir. I doubt very little profit can come from their world now other than their planet being used as a mining base but the job is finished. We're also sorry to say that Taro, the main conquest organizer, has died."

Here, Toma was reporting their most completed assignment to the King himself. Vegeta was very surprised that anybody could get it done, nearly bewildered that a simple band of low-level soldiers managed to exceed where past middle-class soldiers have failed. This undoubtedly garnered his respect as he didn't even believe that anyone given this mission would be able to come out alive—and if so, then in tact, even!

"I must say, very well done," King Vegeta commended them, doing well at hiding his awe. "I won't lie to your faces so I'll just tell you all here: Planet Kanassa was a throwaway mission—a world where I was merely going to allow a new band of warriors, all of you in this case, to fail and merely call it an enigmatic success. I am taken aback that you all managed to come out alive, despite your two losses. You can expect a big reward out of this."

Once King Vegeta had snapped his fingers, his newly recruited mid-class soldier stepped up before Toma and the others.

Nappa had dozens of long silver looking objects in his hand, all of which was considered as a form of currency throughout the galaxy under Freeza's policy. "Here you all are. Be nice now and don't try to get over on one another, hehe."

"Thank you." Toma took them all with an open hand and made sure to divide them amongst he, Bardock, Selypa, Totapo, and Pumbukin evenly.

Pumbukin's eyes glowed in delight upon seeing all the credits he had just been rendered for taking on such a mission. Imagining all the delicious meals he could buy with these had him on the edge of salivating at the mouth.

"That will be all," the King told them. "I appreciate your service."

Toma stood up on his feet and took a few steps forward, passing up Nappa even. This caused a couple of Saiyan men to stand right in front of him to block his way from approaching the King. They all stared coldly into Toma's eyes, appearing as if they all lacked a soul. Toma knew that if he made the wrong move then he'd get shut down immediately. For that reason he thought of his next move before opening up his mouth.

"Sir, if you don't mind."

"Move," Vegeta told his subordinates.

The men did as told and slid directly back into their line by the steps that led to the King's throne. Once Toma was given obvious permission to speak, he resumed. "This mission was rather difficult. Many times we could have died there and it stands to show why so many men before couldn't even manage to accomplish this assignment. For a band of low-levels to do such a thing, that would cause for promotion, would it not?"

_Some guts this soldier has._

"If you didn't already know, which I'm sure you do, I only promote soldiers who manage to catch my eye. You do indeed make a good point but here's the main question: are you strong enough to be promoted? We're not talking in groups here. On your own, none of you would have managed to survive this mission."

Toma stood silent.

"Scan their battle powers," Vegeta ordered.

Doing as told, a few men aimed looked over to Toma and his crew and continued to scan their power-levels. As the numbers grew more and more, some faces began to change expression, showing subtle signs of astonishment.

"As a collective, their powers near that of eleven thousand. But individually, we have this:  **2,520**.  **2,460**.  **2,370**.  **2,280**...and  **2,175**."

Hearing these recorded battle powers intrigued Vegeta. They sure weren't the average power-level of a mid-class soldier but they did indeed excel the natural limits that were expected of low-levels, but he didn't feel that they were ready yet, despite the fact that they showed much promise.

"You're a strong band of soldiers, I'll give you all that much. As far as promoting you, I'm still on the fence about it. I believe that you still have to  _prove it to me_  that you're ready for the next step."

"Bu-"

Selypa pinched Toma's tail to cut him off from objecting the King's words. He understood her intentions immediately and just swallowed his pride by kneeling back down. "Thank you, my King."

"Mhm. Carry on."

By the time that the low-levels left, King Vegeta remained on his throne, rubbing his goatee. The way in which Saiyans were promoted at this time was only telling of if they were insanely strong but what if he were to go by other means of rendering Saiyans the chance of ranking up a class?

All they needed to do was be at a certain power-level to have the chance of being promoted.

_He had the perfect idea._

"Zorn, tomorrow morning, remind me to have all Saiyans currently home to gather up by the palace."

"For what cause, sir? If you don't mind my asking."

"I'm going to make an announcement."

* * *

As for the following day, King Vegeta stood up on a landing site below the Palace, looking over the hundreds of Saiyans, combatants and non-combatants alike that gathered together to hear this announcement that the King wished to speak of. By him, of course, were his mid-class soldiers, son, and even the prodigal scientist: Kuni.

Gine had Kakarot on her shoulders while in the crowd, next to Bardock and Raditz.

"Any idea what this is about?" Gine asked her mate.

"No clue." The only thing he could imagine at this point was the King rallying up all his people for a special mission. However, on second thought, that didn't make any sense because of there being non-combatants in the area, so it had to be something else. "Let's just hope it isn't anything reckless."

"Yeah. Right."

The murmurs that resonated on down below among the crowded Saiyans naturally made it hard for anyone above to be heard. Though King Vegeta had some patience to wait for them to quiet down, they eventually started to carry on small conversations as if they were at a public convention.

Raising his hand and detonating a ki attack surely did grasp the attention of his citizens. Once the small talk amongst them died down, Vegeta opened his mouth.

"Women, men, children, and all soldiers, keep your ears open!" He crossed his arms. "Recently a group of soldiers have come and reported to me about a specific assignment, an assignment that even some of my top-tier men haven't been able to accomplish. Due to them solely being low-level soldiers and having accomplished this assignment, they've felt that they've earned the right to a promotion!"

"Is he talking about you, father?" Raditz asked.

"Yes," Bardock confirmed. "Now listen."

"For the longest when it's come to ranking up our Saiyan soldiers, it's solely been gauged on their power and whether or not it's grown substantially. For that reason, the amount of nobleman we have till this day is extremely low. However, things will change on how we go about ranking up those who desire to become noble soldiers on Planet Vegeta! Kuni, step forward."

"Oh?" Did he really just call her out? The young clone was merely under the impression that she was a bystander, not an actual addition to King's speech. Regardless, she'd be a fool for flagrantly disrespecting King Vegeta by rejecting his order to step forward.

Kuni could feel Prince Vegeta staring hard at her as she approached the railing that the king, too, was nearby. Curiosity getting the best of her, Kuni couldn't help but wonder of the next few words to fly out of his mouth. She believed that she was going to get a mention of some sort since she wouldn't have been called to step up if otherwise.

"This young girl here is Kuni!" Vegeta boomed to his audience. "As some of you may know, she's one of the clones we have on this planet. Her duty was expected to keep track of the future generation of Saiyans like the others but apparently, she's far beyond that. Thanks to this girl, she's been able to aid even our best scientists to a breakthrough, one that's manifested into making enhanced variations of Saibaimen!"

The last four words that echoed from King Vegeta had some people confused. Most managed to put two and two together but others were at a total loss. King Vegeta, knowing that Saiyans can be airheads at times, knew that he'd need someone in the scientific field to thoroughly explain it.

"Kuni, care to explain?" King Vegeta asked her.

"Sure!" she replied with a smile. The girl rested her hands on the metal railing and made sure to speak loudly so that her voice reached the ears of all those that listened. "After weeks of experimentation and simulation, we've managed to genetically engineer the cultivars! Without bombarding you all with the boring explanation of everything we've had to go through in order to get this done, let me put this simplistically: the weakest variation of the Super Saibaimen have a power-level of three thousand while the ones in between rank at approximately seven thousand as the strongest all have a power-level of TEN THOUSAND!"

This information left an insane amount of people bamboozled. For such a creature to have so much power worried a great amount of people, and with great reason. Was this really a good idea? Many had questioned such.

"So in order for a Saiyan to receive any sort of promotion, they must firstly be able to defeat the weakest set of Super Saibaimen! From this point forward, that will be the requirement. This doesn't mean that any weakling can come on through and request such for you will at least need to be around the needed strength in order to prevail against these things. Remember, they are indeed vile! Apart from using them as a chance to become noble men, only the promoted will be able to use these in battle, for they are far too dangerous for any simple low-level to use. Stick to the current ones you all have. Are we of an understanding?"

"Yes, sir!"

Kuni removed herself from the railing and went back by the prince, taking a deep breath. "Wasn't expecting that," she muttered under her breath.

"Don't let my father's acknowledgment of you get to your head," Prince Vegeta warned her. "You're still beneath us."

The purple haired girl just snickered lowly at his words. "Whatever helps you sleep at night." She bowed her head slightly. "Prince."

Vegeta's nose just crinkled.

As the crowd began to disperse due to the King ending it right there, Bardock and his family were ready to head back home and have a nice meal before Gine was to resume her work.

Toma approached Bardock from behind and nudged his comrade on the shoulder to get the man's attention. "I say this is the perfect opportunity for us, Bardock. We can go up in there right now and request to have our deserved promotion."

Bardock didn't even have to think about his response and opened his mouth to reply.

But Gine beat him to the punch.

"Didn't you just hear what they said?" Gine asked him. "The weakest of those things have a power of 3,000... ** _three thousand!_**  Strong you may be but I don't think you guys are ready for that, yet."

"She's right," Bardock concurred.

Toma rubbed his chin to give it a quick thought. Upon coming to his own mental conclusion, the Saiyan nodded in agreement with Gine's words. He personally had a power-level that neared 2,500, which wasn't enough. After also briefly running a hypothetical battle in his head, Toma realized that he would get slaughtered if he were to face one of those things one on one. "Yes, that's true." The Saiyan then smiled. "But I believe I have the perfect assignment that'll prepare us."

"Sounds interesting. Let me know whenever you're ready to go."

"Be up for night time. We leave before morning."

* * *

Bardock never imagined himself having a genuine meal with Gine and his children. He only brought himself to think about this upon realizing that this was the real first time that they even did anything trivial together as Kakarot now being an additional piece in the immediate family made of four. He'd be lying to himself if he said that he didn't enjoy it—even just a little bit.

Kakarot was the first to finish his food, being the smallest one but with the biggest appetite. After licking his bowl clean, he sat it down on the table and asked, "Are you gonna fight those things?"

Everyone looked up, unaware to whom Kakarot had been referring. By seeing his eyes targeted at his father, it became apparent to who he was talking to and what he was talking about.

The Saibaimen.

"Soon, but not too soon," he answered Kakarot. "Why?"

"I wanna fight em!" Kakarot declared.

"Whoah, hahahahaha!" Raditz fell out of his chair in fits of laughter. The thought of his little brother ever growing enough power to take on those things was just far too amusing. Once his fits of laughter died down, the long-haired boy rose back up to the table, teary eyed. "Kakarot, you nearly died the other day trying to take on a bear! What makes you think you'll take those things on? Like, ever!?"

"Pipe down, Raditz," Bardock told him. The scarred Saiyan placed his attention back to his second born. "One day you'll grow strong enough to take them on but please learn the importance of patience, Kakarot. You don't want to rush things that you're not ready for. If it doesn't kill you, then it'll only wound you permanently in the end."

"Right." Raditz pinched his father's cheek playfully—on his scar to be specific. "That's how he got this, little brother. Try to rush things and you'll get a million of em!"

"So? It looks strong!" Kakarot defended his father. Seeing the scar over Bardock's face made him look cool in the young boy's eyes. To most Saiyans, having a scar was looked on as an achievement, a true indication of a warrior's mark. It wasn't uncommon to have them, especially for true seasoned soldiers of the Saiyan race.

"Hahaha," Gine laughed. "Kakarot is right. It makes you look cute!"

"He did  _NOT_  say  _THAT!_ " Bardock shot back, red in the face.

Gine stood up with her finished plate and started to grab for the others. "Well, sorry to cut things short, but work will be starting right back up very soon!"

"I'm gonna go hunting while you work!" Kakarot blurted out.

"Seriously?" Raditz asked. "You almost died trying do it the first time, Kakarot."

"Yes, but he's improved," Gine told Raditz. "He can handle himself on his own out there."

"Hmph!" Raditz folded his arms. He just couldn't believe it. If Kakarot was a lower-class soldier with the same exact occupation as his mother, what good would it do him to actually go out and hunt? If it was his mother, it'd be no problem because she knew how to take care of herself against some animal but Kakarot was still largely inexperienced. Only a fool would enter the same trap twice. "I better not see you crying because Kakarot's dead."

"Enough of that." Bardock plucked Raditz in the ear. "Instead of belittling your little brother, why don't you go out and support him?"

Raditz chuckled as he started to walk out the house. "Nah, I'm gonna go find some people to entertain myself with. See ya later!"

"That Raditz," Gine sighed, shaking her head. "I wonder where he gets that condescending attitude from."

Bardock shrugged his shoulders in response. "Definitely not from either of us. Probably from someone else within the family."

_Family._

And that's when it clicked. Gine had just remembered the face of the individual she had met not so long ago—Turles.

Kakarot hopped out his chair, tail swaying back and forth. "I'm gonna go!"

"Be careful!" Gine called out.

"Ahuh!" was all the boy yelled out before flying out.

Once Gine and Bardock were officially left alone at the house, she looked to him, who looked back at her. Bardock was so used to Gine that he could just tell whenever she wanted to speak what was on her mind before she even opened her mouth. "What is it?" he asked.

"I met this guy not too long ago while you were still out." Gine sat back down on the seat, staring hard into his eyes. "Bardock, he looks just like you."

The Saiyan furrowed his brow. "Just like me—how?" Was it their face? Their stature, eyes, or just maybe clothes even? "Be specific."

"I'm talking about the same hair and almost the same face. He's a bit more slim and darker than you but I'd be dammned if this guy wasn't of some relation to you."

"You don't think he could just be my bastard son?"

Gine reached over the counter and punched Bardock in the shoulder, eliciting a bit of laughter out of him. "No, I'm serious, Bardock!" She knew him for years and not once did Bardock have any interest in anyone asides her so she knew for a fact that Bardock couldn't have had any other offspring. "His name is Turles. Does it ring any bells?"

Bardock's eyes motioned down to the table before he started to give it some thought. He came across many fellow Saiyans throughout his day and it was extremely hard for him to remember names that didn't play a particular part in his life at some time in the past. Gine just kept looking on at him as he thought about it more. Bardock even shifted in his seat, placing his hand over his chin, rubbing his face slowly with his fingers. "Hmmm..."

Gine leaned in a bit closer. It seemed like Bardock was getting there. Maybe it took some deep thought but maybe he did actually remember this person.

"Nope."

"What?"

"That name doesn't ring any bells for me at all," Bardock told Gine.

"Do you have any brothers or sisters? At all?"

He just shrugged his shoulders. "Knowing how people like to pop out more than just one kid, I probably would have a sibling or two, but it's not like I should really care. Wherever they are, I don't really care."

Gine just got quiet. Of course he didn't.

_Bardock isn't sure and it's not like it concerns him anyway. Maybe I could be on to something. But what does it matter? Honestly..._

* * *

In the open hunting grounds, Kakarot sat on a thick tree branch, munching on a piece of fruit. So far nothing interesting enough had come along for him to catch so he just sat there, waiting. A kid usually had impatience when it came to hunting but this little tyke was in no rush at all! He wanted to hunt so that he could fight, not so he could attain food. He longed for that rush he initially had just not long ago and was willing to wait for it.

Going through his mind was the possibility of getting stronger. Despite Raditz's insults being stuck in his head, he still retained Bardock's words as well. The encouragement from his father gave Kakarot all the more incentive to continuously hunt and somehow get stronger out of it.

And those Saibaimen!

Once he ate the food until the seed had been scraped, Kakarot tossed the eaten fruit away. Wrapping his tail around the tree, the boy let himself fall until he remained hanging. Now upside down, his eyes spotted a face—a normal but rather surprising one.

Turles chuckled as Kakarot fell hard, head in the dirt and legs up in the air kicking away frantically. The boy had been grabbed by his ankle, now dangling.

"Just hanging around, huh, kid?"

"Daddy?" Kakarot's eyes blinked tens of times. Though making the mistake that this man was his father, the boy immediately realized that his eyes nor facial features matched that of Bardock's, which Kakarot was already able to make a perfect mental picture of.

"Hah! No." Turles dropped Kakarot on his back. "I'm too young for kids,  _kid."_

Getting up as he rubbed his head, Kakarot felt as if the world had took a mysterious turn. This man looked just like his dad but...he wasn't?

What kind of sorcery was this?

"Who are you?"

"Call me Turles. Nice to meet you...Kakarot."

_Finally. I've managed to get introductions out the way._

"Ah!" Kakarot ran over behind Turles, scrutinizing the man. Turles stood there, weirded out by the fact that this kid was sniffing on him like some animal in heat. Kakarot never familiarized himself with this person before but even despite never meeting him, he felt some inherent connection. Kakarot hopped on his shoulder and grinned widely. "Nice to meet you, too!" More than anything, Kakarot couldn't get over how cool it was that this guy looked so much like him.

 _Like a naive fish_ — _I got it...hooked._

* * *

Toma, lying in his bed, stared up at the roof of his rock made home. On his mind was the possibility of a promotion. Not only that, but his brother reappeared in his head more often than ever. The Saiyan warrior never experienced loss before to this extent and it got to him more than he would ever openly admit.

Sleep was a foreign concept to this warrior by now. He lived to fight—that was all. He loved every last minute of it, whether it be a simple spar, or if it happened to revolve around outright slaughter. Conflict was his field and he loved finishing it, regardless of who happened to initiate anything.

"Still not sleep yet?" Selypa groaned as she rolled over in the bed, yawning with a mild stretch.

"No." Toma looked out the circular hole in his house and noticed the hundreds of bright shining stars in the sky. "Night has come." The bare chested Saiyan removed himself out of his bed and reached for attire that remained on the hanger. "It's time we head over for a next assignment."

"Already…?" Selypa crawled to the edge of the bed, still tired. "Can't we just head out tomorrow morning?"

"Either you rest here or rest on the way there. I told Bardock that we're heading out tonight so that's what we're gonna do."

"Gosh." Selypa took the covers off, revealing her curvaceous figure. "Guess I'll go wake Totapo and Pumbukin up, huh?'

Toma, already dressed, nodded his head with a sarcastic smile. "Duh."

The female grinned. "Fine. Let's go then...tough guy."


	9. Maternal Instinct

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot, after being asked by Turles, decides to head out on a mission. Unforuntately, he does so without running it by Gine, who jumps at the first chance available to retrieve her son.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 9**

**"Maternal Instinct"**

* * *

"If we act like prey, they'll act like predators. Once the false perception is established, then is the perfect time to strike."

Turles crouched down to pick up a dead dog looking creature, one of the wildest animals on their planet. Here he was, before Kakarot, in a land of nothing but towering trees and tangled branches that were being blown hard against by the strong yet cool winds. This was the perfect spot to catch game so here was where he and the young boy attended to quite often ever since meeting one another. Every now and then Turles would bestow some of his own personal ideology onto this child. And he hoped to have it all applied—eventually.

As he showed the animal's dead body to the young boy, Turles continued to speak. "We put ourselves in a situation in which we appear to be vulnerable, weak, and languid, then we will have them believe their own delusion of having dominion over us. Once they set foot into our trap, then we attack and conquer."

Kakarot looked up to Turles with his face at a total blank. This guy was speaking as if words of a foreign language were just flying out of his mouth. The boy didn't know how to respond so he just remained staring in silence.

Turles caught onto this and softly laughed it off. He tossed the dead animal behind his head and kneeled down until he was eye-level with the now four year old. "To say it this way: look weak and sad, then the enemy will think you're weak and sad but you're really strong! So when they attack, you attack by surprise and win. Got it?"

"OH!" Kakarot's tail curled up in a sinuous manner, indicating that he came to an understanding. "I get it!"

"And that's the whole point, kid. This doesn't apply to hunting but fighting as well. There may be one time where you need to seem weak and deceive them to win." Turless eyes gazed off to the sky, looking on with an ambiguous gaze. At this point he was reminiscing on his own past conquests. "I know I have…"

"This is all good to know."

"Yes, it is." The older Saiyan stood up to turn around and crossed his arms. "But this information is useless if it's all not being utilized in what we know as reality. So I say that to say this: why don't you come on missions with me?"

Kakarot scratched his head as he started to tap the ground beneath him with the tip of his boot. Nothing but the possibility of combat has been on his mind for the past few months now, but there was one obstacle. "I don't think my mother will let me."

"Oh." Turles turned around, with a smug grin of mischief that went unnoticed. "Kid, the day you were being taught to fly, I spoke to your mother while you were distracted. I received her permission of taking you out with me and she agreed." He could tell Kakarot's face was full of uncertainty so he pressed on. "Trust me. She's been proven wrong about her doubts of you. You have a better future living a Saiyan's true modus vivendi: one of combat. Surely you won't say no to this. You were born for this."

Kakarot slowly nodded his head. His eyes narrowed and with a face of confidence, he non-verbally agreed.

* * *

Raditz had his legs on the kitchen table as he leaned back in a chair, stuffing his mouth by grabbing out of a wooden bowl full of cooked meat. Though bored to hell, the kid could relax and munch on his food in peace for the moment as he was at peace with the lack of silence. Thanks to his mother and her co-workers being off to retrieve something for work, he was alone for the meantime.

The quick footsteps of a child running into the house did nothing but throw Raditz out of his time of relaxation. The kid opened his eyes to see Kakarot grabbing at two bags of meat. Of course it'd be his little brother to ruin the quiet atmosphere.

"What are you up to?" Raditz asked him. "Making a special delivery?" Raditz knew by the obvious signs of eagerness from his little brother that Kakarot was up to something but he just didn't know what.

Kakarot quickly shook his head. "I'm going on a mission!"

"Mission?" Raditz stood up from his chair abruptly. "Kakarot, you're not one of Planet Vegeta's certified combatants so you can't just go out on assignments!"

"Tell mom I'm off when she gets back, kay?" The boy grabbed some food rations wrapped in bags prior to running out the house.

"Dumbass, you should stay—no you have to!" Raditz rushed over to the exit of their house and shouted at the top of his lungs. "You're too weak!"

His echo carried out from afar to the point of where the young boy could hear it while nearing the clouds. The words struck a chord in Kakarot's mind and made him fly off quicker than the speed he used to  _get home._  He really had to prove a point now.

_I'm not weak._

* * *

On the landing site of Planet Vegeta, numerous spacecraft marshallers signalled the individuals who were ready to go and directed others where to go prior to their departure. Turles was one of the few next in line and was waiting in his own ship. He sat in the mid-section of the duo ship, fingers interlocked with his chin resting on the backside of his hand. As he sat there by himself, the young Saiyan combatant spoke his thoughts aloud.

"I really could start something with this kid…" Turles spoke to himself quietly. "If I can get more like Kakarot, I can take over and make changes myself. Under Vegeta, we will never grow like we're meant to. He's too close-minded and so are his followers. But if I can get them young like the King does...then maybe... _perhaps_ I can get onto something."

As Kakarot made his way into the ship with two bags of food over his shoulder, the boy smiled upon seeing Turles. "I'm back!"

"And it's all starting with you, kid." Turles removed himself from his seat and approached the boy. "Alright. Go put those in the backroom and come back in here. When you get back, I'm going to teach you how to use a scouter and read them."

Kakarot nodded and nonchalantly did as directed. This was his big moment. He couldn't care less what planet he headed to. All Kakarot knew was that he wished to fight. He couldn't imagine himself staying home and working with his mom forever. Yes, he loved her company but he knew that there was more to life for him. He wasn't too sure if his mom would be okay with this but Turles' choice of words from earlier helped the young boy justify his current actions. He had to do this.

* * *

" **AND YOU LET HIM GO!?"**

"Well, it's not my fault!"

Once Gine had been told by Raditz that Kakarot left off to go on a mission, the woman nearly went ballistic. She raised her voice a couple times but whenever enraged, she was even more scary than Prince Vegeta! Gumeel, in the background, tried to work and ignore all of this, but she just couldn't. She remembered that night when Kakarot was nearly killed. The mere thought of this boy going off world to fight was even worrying for her and Kakarot wasn't even her child! Regardless, she knew it wasn't her place to speak up, so Gumeel remained quiet.

"I wasn't going to stop him from doing something he wanted to do!"

Gine let out a ferocious grunt as she pumped her arms back. As hard as it was to contain herself, she did her best to remain composed. "Raditz...give me your scouter."

"B-Bu-"

"Give it to me." She looked over her shoulder. "Now!"

Raditz moved so fast that it looked as if the scouter just came flying from his face. Gine caught the device, put it over her ear, and pressed the only button available to turn it on. Afterwards, she started to press the button again, speaking to all available receptors.

"Kakarot, Kakarot," she called out. "Searching for a Saiyan named Kakarot. If you're there, please respond."

As soon as the word  _Saiyan_ was heard, hundreds of recipients to the open call had shut themselves out immediately.

Silence followed in the house of Gine and Raditz—the former of the two waiting for someone to pick up.

The longer she waited, the more her tail started to lash back and forth. Raditz was mere yards behind her so he made sure to back up to avoid getting whammed in the face. If she knew that she'd be reacting like this, then he would have just squeezed Kakarot's tail and called it a day. He went so long without witnessing his mother's seldom temper that he forgot just how terrifying she could be.

_Sheesh!_

**PIP!**

Upon getting a caller, Gine clicked the button on the scouter yet again to establish connection. "Hello, Kakarot!?"

" _No, it's Bardock. What are you calling Kakarot for?"_

Hearing her mate's voice surely was a relief but still not enough to nullify the concern she had for her baby boy. "It's Kakarot. He's apparently going off on a mission without my permission or anyone else's say so. I'm trying to get a hold of him."

Bardock, well aware of how Gine would act in this instance, tried to reassure her. " _Be cool, stay calm, Gine."_  If Bardock wasn't in the midst of travelling to a planet himself, then he'd be at home, helping out his woman any way he could. " _I promise you, whatever Kakarot is up to, he'll be fine. The kid is smart. Just keep trying to contact him to make sure that he's confirmed safe and maybe even in good_  hands."

Safe, Kakarot could possibly be, but Bardock didn't know any other Saiyans that he could ever trust outside of his own crew that could be considered  _good hands._ He didn't expect to have anything to worry about as he was out on a mission with his comrades but he'd have no other choice but to leave the rest up to fate. If things happened to be settled by the time he got back home, then all's good. However, if Kakarot didn't make it home by the time he did, then he'd have to take matters into his own hands. He was just as worried as Gine was but Bardock was far better at keeping a cool head.

"I'm going to try right now, okay? I might miss him if I don't try to contact him again."

_"Alright, Gine. Be cool."_

"Yeah." She cleared her throat. "Of course."

Once the reception between her and Bardock cut, she got back to her initial calling. "Searching for a Saiyan name Kakarot. If you're there, please respond."

Luckily, Gine didn't have to wait as long as she did the first time whenever she called out for her son. In a matter of seconds, she got an answer back.

_**PIP** _

"Hello?" Gine called out. She hoped that on the other end, a high pitched squeaky voice would pop out. As a mother, she could recognize her son's voice from even a mile away.  _Please be Kakarot. Please be Kakarot._

" _Kakarot is here with me."_

The tone of this unexpected voice sent chills down Gine's spine. Not a nanosecond later and she could instantly picture the face with his voice.

It was Turles.

"Now I don't know if you know, but Kakarot isn't a certified combatant. He can't be going off on missions so bring him back home!"

" _Sorry, no can do."_

"Let me talk to him!"

Turles chuckled. While Gine was out making calls for her son, Turles was in the midst of teaching Kakarot how to decipher readings over the scouter. He made sure to put the boy to sleep by tightly gripping his tail prior to answering Gine's call himself. As far as he was concerned, Kakarot wouldn't have any recollection about his mother calling for him. " _He's resting at the moment. But I can assure you that Kakarot is fine. We'll be back soon."_

"I don't want soon!" Gine roared. "I want now! Turn that damn ship around or I'll find you my damn self and drag you here!"

" _Hehe. I'd love to see you try. Planet Gawake, orbiting star 84. We'll be there."_

The woman opened her mouth to respond but was cut off short by Turles' rude hang up. This left the woman only more irate. She turned around and pushed Raditz onto the ground as she left out the house with a sense of urgency.

"Hey, wait up!"

Gine stopped in her tracks and waited for Raditz to get closer to her. Once within touching distance, she shoved him in the chest yet again, which caused him to stumble back. "Don't follow. You stay here! Prince Vegeta may need you at anytime and I don't need any help going to get Kakarot."

"Come on, I can he-"

"You don't even like Kakarot so why would you be all eager to help him out now? Do as told and stay here! I'll be back soon."

Raditz was left with a disappointing pout on his face. He only desired to go to ensure his mother's safety. Due to being told how careless she tended to be on the battlefield, Raditz wasn't under the impression that she'd have a simple time on some world that she knows absolutely nothing about. Yes, she was right—he couldn't care less about Kakarot, but if there was one person he had some sentiment for...it was his mother.

Regardless, he obeyed his mother and didn't as much as move an inch forward. He watched as she fled the scene in a hurry. "Be back soon..."

* * *

Planet Gawake, a nearly ice cold world filled with potential avalanches that also had humongous sized glacies within nearly every vicinity. The only land that wasn't absolutely rock solid water happened to be buried in deep by an insane amount of snow. This wasn't a world that any outsider would just like to visit—especially if they already knew a bit about the planet.

It'd be insanely hard for any other non native to adapt to this environment but as expected, there was an evolutionary phase in which a species was made particularly for this near intolerable planet.

The Lyken species, a race of abnormally tall people with fur covering their entire body, were the inhabitants who had dominion over this world. Everyone had their own homes and lived peacefully. Dozens upon dozens of gigantic bonfires took place to keep the younglings warm, as they were still in the process of developing fur, which naturally kept them cozy.

Gine knew she was taking a risk by attending this planet. She hadn't realized just how bad this could possibly be until she entered Planet Gawake's atmosphere. There were no clouds on this planet—just packs of foggy mist. So much of it resided on this world that the only round glass on Gine's circular attack pod was coated to every extent, which limited her from being able to see a damn thing from the inside looking out.

"Damn…" she cursed under her breath.

She didn't even take into consideration of all the factors that could lie within this world. Gine hadn't thought about the gravitational pull, the climate, nor the inhabitants that lived here. They could be strong, weak, volatile, pacifistic, or anything else. A huge risk she indeed was taking to not look into this world before shooting off, but the instinct to get to her son for his own safety had overridden all rationale.

**BAM!**

The unnatural crashing sound resonated all throughout the skies of Gawake, even traversing its way to a cave, one which the shotcaller of Gawake's army even heard. His top guards all stood at alert, looking directly over to their leader. They were to be in a time of relaxation prior to going back out so that they could hunt. For this moment to be ruined or delayed was a sign of outright disrespect that had consequences of severe punishment.

Said leader remained seated in his especially large chair, with his hairy eyes fixated on the raging bonfire within the cave. The only time crashing sounds were heard was when avalanches started to fall. This sound was different and it brought suspicion to them. Despite the unusual noise, all of them remained cool and collected.

"Gurrrrrr! Gurrrr!"

The leader closed his hands, signalling for his men to shut up. He then proceeded to stand up from his chair, being so tall that the peak of his head was mere inches from touching the ceiling of the cave. He raised his hand near his chin, showing all four fingers, proceeded to close his fist, and smashed it on the palm of his other hand.

After receiving their non-verbal orders, the soldiers guarding their leader all turned around to a rack of weapons. They had clubs, ropes, daggers, stones, spears, bows and arrows, as well as many more. Whatever it was that they had to prepare for, many could bet their bottom dollar that they were ready.

The Lyken people preferred their kind and their kind only, for security assurance. Any outsiders weren't going to be greeted nicely.

* * *

Hairs standing on end as her arms went numb with trouble flying through the harsh cold of Planet Gawake wasn't what Gine really had in mind.

Walking on foot was a bad option so she stuck to the sky. Initially, Gine figured that if she flew high enough, then she'd have an easier time making way. Unfortunately, she couldn't see anything but fog. At least on the low ground she was able to make do of  _something_ , even if it was hard to see.

"He's got to be around here somewhere…" Gine clicked the green scouter she wore over her left eye, hoping to be able to find a battle power tantamount to her second born child.

The device continued to beep for approximately half a minute as Gine looked all around by moving her head and eyes to virtually every possible angle. She wasn't able to come up with anything and this only left her less confident. She should have known something was fishy when she didn't receive any signals from any potentially nearby pods. Either that or it could be of the simple fact that she was in a far away distance from where her son happened to land.

"I might die before I make it to him." the woman inhaled deeply. The icy cold air filled up her lungs, which felt as if they were on the verge of freezing with each breath that she took. "I don't know how long I'll be able to last just flying around in this weather."

This was going to be a struggle all throughout. It's bad enough that she can barely see, but even the rations preset inside the unauthorized ship she arrived in wouldn't last her long enough. Unless she could find a sacred place to go and start a fire at for rest time, then Gine had no chance.

_**PIPIP** _

"Gurrrr! Gurrr!"

Gine's head jerked around. The scouter indicated there to be four different people, all individuals with battle powers equivalent to 200. The woman's tail wagged side to side involuntarily—an indication of the nerve-racking feeling that started to rise from within. And for the first time since being here, she started to feel a warmth sensation come over her body.

The Saiyan instinct to fight was kicking in.

Gine didn't know whether or not these people had the intentions of harming her or being nice to her but past experience reminded her that she always fought immediately upon arrival of an outside world.

"H-Hi..?"

Two of the four mysterious figures launched their way over to Gine, who was virtually blinded by the mist. Because of this she wasn't able to prevent any unwanted attacks in time. One of the two that came for her grabbed the woman by her arm and forced it behind her back as the other one punched her in the stomach.

Gine started to double over but was lifted back up and smacked across the face. The Lyken held her face and softly touched her cheek as he scrutinized her abnormal appearance. Aware that she had been subdued, the other two came out from behind and approached Gine as well.

The woman's eyes narrowed. She started to grind her teeth as she fought to be let go by wrapping her tail around one of the men and squeezing tightly. The Lyken who had a hold of her from behind let go and reached over for his rope on his back so that he could hogtie her.

Gine fought hard by punching and kicking away at the others but it was all to no avail. Not only was it hard for her to pinpoint their exact locations but the fact that she was going up against four people at once was just unfair.

She got overpowered and paid dearly by being sent into a mountain from afar, rammed into the very peak of it to be exact. The impact rocked the woman hard and nearly knocked her out of a state of consciousness. Every single time she tried to breathe, she felt as if her heart and lungs were being stung by a million microscopic needles. She hated that the feeling of drowsiness started to overwhelm her but she just couldn't help it.

"I've got...to get...up."

Gine slowly rolled over to get on her back so she could at least place herself into a more comfortable position. Much to her displeasure, she found the same giant four people standing right over her, all with a blank stare on their faces. Gine was an unusual specimen but if they had to guess, she surely was a female. One of them, after noticing this, spoke in their native tongue. This elicited a menacing laughter from the others, whom all just looked onto their new victim with a dirty look.

They all looked at one another yet again momentarily before looking back down onto her. One of the men placed his foot on Gine's side and started to softly rub against it before suddenly kicking her.

The female went rolling down the insanely tall hill of the snow-filled mountain. As she rolled and rolled, Gine found herself being enveloped by a humongous circular snowball. The sounds of laughter coming from her four assailants died down the more that the snowball grew.

By the time that the rolling ball of snow made it to the beginning stages of the mountain, it was well twice the size of the average home on Planet Vegeta. Once it came crashing into a thick tree, Gine could be seen laid out with her quivering body. Her skin appeared to be frozen, as if she was in a cryogenic tank for the span of decades. And even despite the numbness that soared through her entire body, the woman still managed to spew out something.

It wasn't just a word, but rather a name—a name that held a substantial amount of importance to her.

"B…B-Bar...dock."

Every single time whenever Gine put herself in a predicament in which she couldn't get out of, Bardock would always come to her rescue. Even if he was on the other side of the world, he'd be there in under a minute, able to aid her in need. She hoped and hoped that Bardock would miraculously come to save her but even in her current poor condition, Gine retained enough sense to realize Bardock wasn't coming.

Because this time

Bardock wasn't here.

_She uttered his name one last time before drifting off to sleep._


	10. Fit of Survival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prince Vegeta comes to a realization. There's only one other way in which he will be able to progress in strength the way he sees fit.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 10**

**"Fit of Survival"**

* * *

For a Saiyan warrior to enter double digits of the thousands in battle power was looked at as an utter anomaly. Prince Vegeta was particularly assigned to stay home and not leave until he trained and eclipsed a power-level of 10,000. These were exact orders from his father. Despite anxiously wanting to test his new increased power by jumping off world, the prince abided by the king's words.

Kuni was in the Prince's nearly silent room, being the one to personally look over the young boy's progress in power. She had a tablet in hand which she utilized to take notes.

 _Vegeta was already at 9,695 before he came here and he's already made it passed 10,000! Only nine years since his conception and he's already surpassed his father._ Kuni's eyes motioned over to Vegeta as he healed.  _Could he really be?_

**BEEP**

Vegeta's eyes shot open as the chamber's draining sequence begin.

His healing was complete.

Once the hatch to the door had opened, Vegeta stepped out, still drenched in the liquid he was soaked in just moments ago. He was completely stripped of his clothing but the young child had no shame in being naked in front of anybody.

"Congratulations, Prince Vegeta." Kuni tossed him a towel. "Record shows your power-level to now be 10,500. You're officially the strongest Saiyan alive."

"Of all people to give me these news, I didn't expect it to be you." Vegeta stepped down and walked over to his new fresh pair of clothing that was set on the counter for him. He, at the very least, figured that either his father or one of his father's noble scientific subordinates would be the ones to relay the news. Imagine his annoyance upon finding out he had to come face to face with her again... a non-Saiyan clone that was being rendered special treatment by the king.

Kuni, of all people.

"I hope that isn't a problem..?"

"It's not." Vegeta started to put on his underclothing. "You're just...odd."

"Ohkay…?" She just came to deliver him an update, not be spoken down onto. The young girl understood why some people saw Prince Vegeta as a pain in the neck, though they'd never be too outspoken about it—and for obvious reasons.

"I already don't trust you clones," he continued. "At anytime and any day, something can go wrong and your programming can be malfunctioned, giving you and your people the incentive to try and takeover. If someone's going to be doing any type of job on Planet Vegeta, then it should be by Saiyans, not outsiders. That's what we have lower class Saiyans for."

Kuni cleared her throat. She knew that she had to think her words through before responding so that she didn't inadvertently offend the prodigal child of the king. "Well, I assure you that you don't have to worry about any of us revolting. I don't know if the king or anyone has told you, but the day our people were conquered—our real people—all the men and any others that could prove as a remote threat were effectively eliminated. Only my type are the ones that remain and we're not in any position at all to possibly throw you all over. We are an intelligent group—sure—but only in the field of science. If we used our expertise to our advantage in an attempt to conquer Planet Vegeta and any other group apart of the Freeza Force, the chances would still favor you and our hypothetical enemies in lieu of us."

Vegeta was silent for a while before he could respond. Everything that had came from this girl's mouth was impossible to debate against so he didn't even touch up on that historical topic. "Hmph. You're still an odd one." Upon putting on his boots, the kid stood erect. "You're the only clone with purple hair. Blue is your natural color but apparently you  _chose_ to dye it? Malfunction maybe?" Vegeta added a pinch of sarcasm to his tone of voice with his last question.

Kuni just gave him a warm and somewhat sarcastic smile. "I guess so, Vegeta. I guess so. Touche."

* * *

"Planet San'en. Orbiting star 77."

King Vegeta sat on his throne, fist pressed against his cheek with an expressionless look on his face. Just before him was one of his advisors, reporting the information of the Prince's next destination. For the past few weeks now, the King had put all of his focus into his son and his growth in power as he continued to get older. He'd have special missions for his son which required the above average sum of resources to look into. Regardless of the excitement he had revolving around his son's development, everything that came along with it was still tedious. However no matter what, the King made sure all plans went through until the very end.

"What else?"

"Our scouts say that they average a power-level of 500. Strongest natural living organism there is recorded to have a combat power of 7,000. Climate resembles that of any other barren and desolate world. Two extremely hot suns mostly made of sand with surrounding areas that are of complete sand dunes. The targeted inhabitants all live inside the ground and they use the element of surprise to get a hold of their victims. They're to be killed but not disintegrated. The acid inside their bodies can be used as a form of weaponry if tested and thoroughly researched. Expected time of arrival would be 504 hours, which is 8 hours short of a full moon. Time expected for completion is two weeks."

"I'll have it done in two days," Prince Vegeta spoke up.

This elicited a hearty laugh from his father. "That's the attitude of a true warrior!"

An extensive amount of research went into these assignments, which could sometimes take up to weeks. Sure, his son could take on something with a power-level of 7,000 but King Vegeta knew from experience that outsiders always had weird and tricky techniques at times. Before he is to start giving him the possibly hardest available assignments out there, he needed to use this mission as a test, to see if his son would be capable of succeeding. And judging by his son's assuredness of himself, he was positive that the prince would come out—unscathed even.

"Are the coordinates already set?'

"Yes, sir."

King Vegeta shifted his eyes over to his son and nodded, giving him the go ahead. "Good luck, my son."

Vegeta gave a slight bow to his father before making his leave. As he walked on toward the exit of his father's throne, all the other Saiyans looked on at him in a deep gaze. Every single Saiyan in that room was absolutely astonished by this kid's power for his age. The King was never anywhere this close yet his son is? This could only leave others to imagine just how strong he'd be by the time he was his own father's age. Hell, how strong would the prince's kid be, even? It gave them chills just thinking about it. The sole realization of the prince's inherit potential erased any doubt in the Saiyans' minds that he'd be the one to free them from under Freeza.

Even the King himself, didn't see the purpose of having a child other than to live up to the Saiyan name and title as the next king. Upon seeing his son's potential grow as he got older, he realized that he was something special and he felt as if he jumped in to take this opportunity to capitalize upon his potential at the perfect moment.

As Prince Vegeta had his mind set on eating on the trip over to Planet San'en, he didn't focus all that much on his surroundings. Because of this moment of a lack of concentration, Vegeta didn't hear his old comrade calling him from ahead until he got closer.

"Hey, Vegeta!"

Vegeta didn't even have to recognize Nappa by his voice but instead by his large kneecaps. He was just such a giant that even standing on his tippy toes, Vegeta wouldn't be able to stand above the balding Saiyan's waist.

The prince just frowned. "Oh, it's you." Looking up, the young Vegeta noticed Nappa to be wearing a cape. Seeing this put a smile to his face. If Nappa was wearing a white cape with a red color for the interior, then he is officially promoted to mid-class status. In other words, he won't have to be working alongside this big goof anymore. If there were any good news all this week, all of them weren't a thought anymore since Nappa leaving his squad was the best to come yet. "I see you're finally where you're meant to be," the boy continued to greet, this time with a smirk.

"Ah, yeah!" Nappa scratched the back of his head. "Apparently saving you and Raditz convinced the King I was worthy. I think he really just did it out of gratitude for keeping you alive though, heh!"

"You told my father what happened?" Vegeta snarled.

Nappa noted the sudden hostility from Vegeta and backed off a bit, chuckling nervously. "Well, yeah! See, he asked, heh!"

Vegeta's left eye twitched. Never before had his father been told that his son wasn't able to send home a mission. Not only that, but he didn't take kindly to the idea of his father thinking about his first born getting beat up to a pulp. His father would think he's weak. "Dumbass." He shoved Nappa aside. "Get outta my way!"

"Whoah, whoah! Sorry, Vegeta!" Just as Nappa was going to turn around and tend to a meeting, he looked back over to the prince. "ALSO, YOU'RE GETTING A NEW PARTNER!"

Vegeta stopped and looked over his shoulder. "Say what?"

"Yeah, it's my daughter! She's already by your assigned ship at the landing site! She's kinda odd but she's a sweetheart, I promise!"

Vegeta's eyes rolled and stopped at his top left. Picturing a short, girly looking muscular girl with a near bald head and a goatee made the prince tremble in absolute discomfort.

**PIPIP**

Vegeta clicked the button aside his scouter, answering the call request. "Who is it and what is it?"

"Yo, it's Raditz. When we heading out to our next mission?"

"Right now, as a matter of fact. Meet me at the landing site. We're headed for Planet San'en."

"On it."

"By the way, if you see a girl anywhere near one of the ships, then that's our new partner."

"Our new wh-"

Vegeta cut the reception.

* * *

First mission alongside the Prince! Something to truly be excited about.

A young female girl by the name of Vosa just waited and waited by her ship, tail wagging side to side eagerly. She knew what Prince Vegeta looked like so if she were to even catch a glimpse of him, she'd call him on down! Of all people, she was really working with the prince! Vosa was having a hard time containing her excitement.

Her eyes shot off from side to side, looking all over for her new comrades. Seeing the same people directing and guiding ships for take-off and seeing men deliver equipment did get boring after awhile. She just hoped that one of them arrived some time soon.

It didn't take all too long for Raditz to arrive over at the landing site. He wondered just who exactly this new partner would be.

The young boy disregarded all the Saiyans and other citizens dressed in regular working uniform and looked for any female individual that happened to be in combat attire. Once he saw a young girl with a brown chestplate and violet pants with torn sleeves, he momentarily froze. She was obviously still young but she was most definitely older than he and Vegeta. Her curly side mohawk was somewhat an odd view but other than that, her thin yet curvy figure was typical of a female Saiyan.

She was also kinda cute.

Raditz walked up to the girl with a big cheesy grin on his face, putting some pep in his step. His exaggerated walk made him stand out like a sore thumb and Vosa realized that he just may become apart of his team as well.

"YO!" Raditz called out.

"Hey!" Vosa greeted. "Are you coming to Planet San'en, too?"

"Yep." The young boy leaned over and placed his forearm against their ship. "First ever assignment, huh?"

Vosa shook her head. "Of course not. I was working on missions with a few other guys but ever since my father's been promoted, I was reassigned to a new team! Now I'm working with the best of the new generation—or so they say."

"Who's your father?" If her dad happened to be promoted, then this meant that Vosa was now apart of a noble family. By the time she was a capable adult Saiyan soldier, her chances of being promoted to mid-class status would be higher than many other growing Saiyans—even himself.

"Nappa," she answered.

Raditz fell over on his side, wide-eyed.

_IS SHE SERIOUS? NAPPA!?_

Vosa looked on, somewhat perplexed as to why Raditz fell so suddenly. Were the news that shocking to him? Nappa was just like any other top-class Saiyan warrior. What was so odd about that?

"You don't look anything like him at all!" Raditz exclaimed after shooting back up on his feet. He swiftly slid behind Vosa, eyes examining every detail of her body. The 13 year old girl's brow quirked as Raditz just observed her. "Wow…"

"We've no time for courtship!" Vegeta blurted out as he approached the two. "We have business to handle."

"Prince Vegeta!" Vosa and Raditz called out.

Vosa was quick to lower her level of surprise as she looked over him. "You're a lot shorter than I thought you'd be."

This caused Vegeta to stare daggers at her as Raditz did his best to stifle a snicker from behind.

_Cute and funny, too. She might add some fun to our team!_

* * *

A scaly three foot creature with claws for teeth used ten of its eyes to check its surroundings. As of the current moment, the climate on Planet San'en was at its absolute hottest but it needed some form of nutrition before it could go back into hiding so it could cool off.

Its heart beat at above normal levels in fear of the other predators within its environment. The Sand Dunes were areas in which happened to be worry free but at balanced ground level, things could get quite hectic.

Just on the right side, the creature happened to spot a big, fat critter with a transparent mid-section, which had all types of food inside. Knowing that this would be a rather very rewarding meal, it started to use its teeth for claws to make its way to its next meal.

Unfortunately for this critter, it'd become the feast rather than being the one to feast.

Out from the ground came a giant dry rough skinned looking beast. It revealed its tentacles and only a portion of its face, which had an abnormally oversized and lengthy tongue leave its mouth. The smaller creature had absolutely no chance as the ground began to sink in. The sand constantly moved and it had nothing to hold onto at all. In just a matter of seconds, it had been swallowed whole.

By the time it managed to get its prey, the Acidian had disappeared right back into the ground.

* * *

"We're gonna start needing insulated armor if we're going to be at planets like these."

The three young Saiyans had finally made their arrival on Planet San'en after just a few weeks of travel. The gravity was even heavier than that of Planet Vegeta and it took its toll mostly on Raditz, who wasn't yet adjusted to such high gravity.

The long-haired boy took in a deep breath and slowly walked a bit so that his body could at least get some familiarity.

"What's the matter?" Vegeta joked. "Having trouble?"

"Hey, you'll get used to it in no time!" Vosa walked over to Raditz from behind and patted the boy on his back. That single tap was more than enough to have him fall over with his face directly into the sand. Vegeta snickered as Vosa did her best to hide her laugh. "Oops, sorry!" She lifted the boy back up.

"Try to stay away from the ground," Vegeta warned them both. The young prince slowly levitated off Planet San'en's ground and made his way up high. "The Acidians live in the sand so we best be in the air for our time here."

"Good point," Raditz agreed as he spat out sand from his mouth.

"Right!" Vosa was quick to ascend up into the sky as well, even further up than Vegeta himself. "Besides, the higher up we go, the colder it is!" The girl spread out all five fingers in her hand, eyes looking directly at the ground approximately 30 yards away from where Raditz was. Before said Saiyan child could even get his feet off the ground, Vosa had initiated the attack.

Once she closed her fist, a booming explosion followed, kicking up an insane amount of sand in the process.

The ground began to rumble immediately after, shaking as if a world ending earthquake was approaching. Vosa felt her body trembling despite the fact that she was so high up in the sky. "Did I just destroy the planet?"

"Lookout, you idiot!" Vegeta yelled at his comrade from above.

Raditz, who was finding it extremely hard to maintain his balance while on foot, looked behind his shoulders. Up ahead, one of the oversized creatures started to make its way from underground. Watching its exit from underground was something that this kid had never witnessed before. Despite already well over 30 feet at this point, it was still making its exit!

The kid crouched down, tensing his body up as much as he could prior to making a jump into the sky so he could take flight. Before he could even make it 20 feet into the air, he had been struck ruthlessly in the back from behind, which ultimately sent him down crashing on his face.

While it seemed that one was enough to worry about, far more started to pop out of the woodworks.

This caused the Saiyans' scouter to constantly beep at a seemingly never ending rate.

Raditz pushed himself off the ground and started to make a run for it. These big creatures used their dry rock like tentacles as a way to balance themselves on ground. Raditz went to running side to side and jumping over their appendages, which they used as an attempt to trip him over.

"Fool, why don't you just get up and fly!?" Vegeta fired an attack at one of them from afar, blasting a hole through its head to kill it on impact. He then looked over to Vosa, who was preparing an attack of her own. "Whatever you do, don't blast these things to hell! A part of the mission is to make sure their bodies remain intact after death."

"Yes, sir!"

Vosa proceeded to close her eyes for a split second as she widened out her arms. Immediately after clapping her hands together, the young warrior's eyes had opened. Then followed an extreme explosion on the battlefield, which would leave a dark hole in the shape of a square.

Raditz was on the section of the ground as it continued to rumble even more. Upon realizing that he'd collapse if he didn't take flight soon, the kid mustered up all the power he could to hop up and fly off into high altitude. Once he was high enough, Raditz turned around to get a good view at the scenery from above.

The monsters seemed to be made of literal dried up mud mixed with rock particles, which would just so explain their hardened exterior. Raditz read them all to have power-levels around 500 and for there to be so many of them around all at once was quite the scare. Regardless, he wasn't just going to embarrass himself.

Raditz elevated his hands above his head and started to channel a ball of ki. "Think you can stand up to Saiyans? Think again!" Raditz launched forth his attack and watched as it zeroed in on one of them. Despite one of the things getting hit directly, no damage had been done at all. Raditz was left almost shuddering at just how unscathed the Acidian was.

"Let's see how they can take us on head first!"

"I wouldn't recommend tha-"

Vegeta had been cut off as Vosa took off anyhow on her own accord. As fast as she was going, she knew that she needed to focus on her targets' bodies. They had flailing tentacles all over the place and she could get trapped easily. With immaculate concentration, Vosa was capable of dodging every single one that came in her way.

She span around mid-air, evading one of the Acidian's appendages just in time prior to landing on another one that stood erect. Despite the texture of the creature's arm, she managed to slide down for a few good seconds, then jumped off to land on another tentacle, which she ran on top of for a bit longer before leaping up with a ki generated in the palm of her hand. Right before the Acidian's face, she blasted the thing directly in the mouth. Upon kicking it and bouncing away, she watched as the Acidian exploded to bits.

Raditz could be seen looking on in utter astonishment. Her manuerving was so crisp, so clean, and just all around flawless. "She's cute, funny, and strong, too…" he mumbled under his breath. "Vegeta, she has to stay on our team! She's amazing!"

The Prince scoffed at Raditz and then opened his mouth to shout at Vosa. "I told you to not blow them up to bits! The inhabitants of this world are valuable, not the planet itself!"

"Y-yeah," Raditz scratched his head. "It can be used as a minefield or something!"

"Oops!" Vosa chuckled. "Got a lil' carried away."

"Wreckless just like her father." Vegeta shook his head. "Let's finish off these clowns!"

"And there goes the last," said Raditz as he fired an energy beam right through one's cranium.

"Only within this specific area." Vegeta clicked at his scouter. The device rendered them no indication of any forms of life, which only caused him to hiss.

"Nothing?" Vosa asked him.

"No," Vegeta answered.

"That's odd." Raditz rubbed his chin as he started to give it some thought. Could it be because they're some odd race? After all, he's never met creatures that lived underground like this before. Maybe the elemental atmosphere was different for them. Truth be told, kid had no clue.

"If I had to guess, its because they go undetected as they're underground." Vegeta then crossed one arm as he tapped against the side of his lip. "There's no telling just how far these things live underground."

"I don't think they're too far from here," Raditz said, his voice nearly cracking. Once he got the attention of his two comrades, he looked down at his own feet. From there on Vegeta and Vosa were able to see that Raditz's ankle had been wrapped around by a tendril.

"Up now!"

Vegeta and Vosa were quick to ascend off the ground and remain hovering at a distance in which they wouldn't be able to be caught up.

Raditz was under the impression that this planet was extremely hot before, however at this point, he was hotter than ever! Being subdued by one of these things with the inability to free himself put the boy in panic mode. Sweating profusely and now yelling out the top of his lungs, he asked for his comrade's help. "VEGETA! VOSA!"

"Idiot!" Vegeta sneered.

"Hey, do something!" Vosa told Vegeta. "It's going to drag Raditz in there and kill him alive!"

"Who are you the one to be giving me orders!?" Vegeta barked. "I'm your Prince! And I say we let that dunce figure it out. If he manages to make it back out alive, then good, he's doing his job. If not, then he's just another weakling."

Did Vegeta really think like that? Vosa didn't spend all that much time with her father growing up but hell, she recalled how proud he always was of having such nice comrades! She at least thought they weren't only strong, but willing to put in a helping hand as well. How in the hell could Nappa not realize this?

She turned her head over to Raditz, who's very head was the only thing visible. Well over 90 percent of his body was swallowed hole by the ground, which continued to just sink inward. She couldn't just let a fellow Saiyan die if she was able to stop it without being put in extreme danger herself.

Knowing exactly how she would be able to liberate the young Raditz, Vosa jacked the opportunity to do so.

The girl spread her arms all the way out behind and twirled them at exorbitant speeds, giving off the illusion that she had multiple pairs of arms! Upon bringing it back forth, she clapped as hard as her body would let.

Just at the very same area in which Raditz was getting dragged, the ground from underneath had just fell in entirely—well the sand to be exact. So much sand had sank in that literal rock was all that could be seen, including an oversized hole in which the Acidian used to live in.

Raditz was left wondering what kind of trick she pulled in order to do all of this. But that wonder was quickly replaced by a feeling of gratefulness. Vosa, now able to see the thing's body clearly, fired off an attack potent enough to take it down for good.

And as expected, it was an absolute success.

The blast went through its brain and killed it.

Raditz was able to make his way back up on land and rolled over on his back to catch a breather. "That was a close one…"

One thing in battle was always a certainty: Death. After all the battles Raditz had been in through so far, he has killed, rendering death to hundreds of thousands of individuals. Hell, he was even aware of the concept of death prior to having his first assignment. However, there was one thing: he didn't want to know what it was like on the other side—Thantophobia.

"You okay?" Vosa asked him, touching down beside her comrade. She went as far as to helping him back up on his feet.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Vosa looked up to Vegeta, staring coldly at him. "You had every chance to save his life but you didn't! What's the matter with you?"

"Tch! Too weak so he has to be saved!" Vegeta then smacked his lips. "Pathetic."

"Vegeta's right," Raditz said, standing up for his Prince. "You should have listened to him. Even if I was going to die...I-I should have figured a way out of it myself."

"Hah! Even he agrees!"

"He doesn't even mean that!" Vosa shot back. "He's only saying that because you're his subordinate and you're the prince. He was calling for help, so if he really lived by your ideology, then he wouldn't have asked." She looked back to Raditz. The boy did everything to avoid eye-contact, not saying anything at all. "Right, Raditz?" She nudged him on the shoulder.

"Uh…"

**SNAP, CRACKLE, POP**

**RUMBLE**

Vibrating sensations travelled all throughout the bodies of Raditz, Vosa, and Vegeta. Undoubtedly, just as what happened mere moments subsequent to their arrival, the ground began to shake violently.

From hundreds of yards ahead, they saw a huge, gigantic Acidian jumping from under the sand and back down into land consecutively like a fish hopping in and out of water. Not only that, but it was coming at excessive speeds.

**PIPIP**

All recorded a power-level of 7,000 exactly. This struck a chill in a spines of Raditz and the newest addition to their squad. Vegeta saw that it was coming at a quick speed, but it was still slow enough for him to be able to shoot out of the way. As for Raditz and Vosa, he wasn't all that sure, so he just looked on from the side.

Vosa shoved Raditz out of the way with enough force to send him sliding through the sand for dozens of yards. Because of this, she took one for the team by getting herself wrapped up by one of its tentacles.

Raditz swiftly got back up to his knees and looked on, mouth wide as can be. He witnessed Vosa getting picked up and falling inside the mouth of the Acidian. Raditz got up on his feet and fired off two energy attacks back to back.

All to no avail.

The Acidian didn't do as much as feel the attacks coming his way so it continued on, closing its mouth as soon as Vosa was in it.

Vegeta smacked his lips. "Idiots, the both of you!"

_I've got to help her! But how?_

Raditz was already far too weak to do remotely any damage to the thing at all so him making an effort to aid Vosa would merely result in his death, which would ultimately put a further detriment to their squad than anything else.

"Vegeta!" Raditz called out. "I can't possibly take that on!"

Vegeta grinned, unfolding his arms. "Oh, I know." From the very moment that he and the other two landed on Planet San'en, Vegeta couldn't help but wait and get a taste of the strongest Acidian that lied here on this world. This thing had over three dozens of tentacles and was standing at well over 50 feet tall and even stood at a greater width.

Vegeta zoomed in at the giant creature. He span around in countless circles momentarily prior to flipping over and grabbing one of its tails. Keeping a nice and tight grip on the tentacle, Vegeta started to fly around it, rapidly tying the thing around with its own appendage. He was aware of the creature using its other tentacles to try and catch him but he only used that to his advantage.

If there happened to be an oversized appendage chasing him from behind, Vegeta merely continued to fly around it in an effort to continuously tie it up. If there happened to be some coming at him from head on, then he'd merely blast it away with his free hand.

By the time an entire tentacle was all around its body, Vegeta pulled in with all its might. So much power had been placed into the yank that the Acidian started to spin around crazily. The young prince took this as an advantage and kicked away at it dead center in its midsection.

The foreign creature was sent sliding through the sand of Planet San'en but it didn't take very much damage. It got right back up, snarling with slime falling out of its very pores and onto its skin.

Vegeta's brow quirked in confusion. "Is this some kind of defense mechanism?"

Raditz had no other choice but to watch. The entire time he was concerned on if Vosa would manage to survive long enough but that all depended on how fast Vegeta could dispose of this nuisance.

Vegeta found himself dodging all what the Acidian had to throw at him. Vegeta was moving at a constant pace and had absolutely no room for breaks. For over thirty humongous appendages to be swinging directly for him every single half second was starting to take its toll and the Saiyan slowed down. That costed him by getting smacked in the face by one of them and slammed down by the five more simultaneously.

Vegeta landed on one knee and half of one foot with clenched fists. The young prince looked back up, snarling at the teeth. He performed a backflip to avoid another strike and retaliated with a ball of ki as soon as he landed on his feet.

The blast didn't do anything.

Nothing but a bit of smoke from the explosion became visible to the eye but other than that, there had been no evident damage bestowed upon Vegeta's target. This left the nine year old perplexed and questioning whether or not he got the proper reading from his scouter.

Vegeta hopped off his back foot to gain momentum before he got back down and let his feet carry him as fast as he could go. He ran quickly for a bit before hopping up to land and bounce off one of the appendages prior to dashing in right for the face with a cocked fist. His punch, which was perfectly aimed, had done absolutely nothing since all his hand did was slip. This left Vegeta open and he paid for this as well by getting redirected into the sky, soaring as if he had been shot out of a catapult.

He turned around just in time, but had been grabbed by the ankle and slammed down ferociously onto his back, kicking up an insane amount of sand in the process. Some entered his mouth and that forced Vegeta to cough it up.

"Raditz!" Vegeta called out. "How strong is that thing?"

Raditz was in a near sweating panic. Seeing Vegeta getting handled like he was had been quite concerning to him but even in the heat of the moment, he listened to orders and decided to give the reading. Subsequent to looking at the numbers that his scouter provided, he informed his superior. "Power-level 7,000!"

_That makes no sense!_

Vegeta closed his eyes briefly, reminiscing on how beforehand, he was able to take down the others with blasts and kicks as if they were nothing. This one was still weaker than him by more than a mile yet his most recent attacks weren't working.

Vegeta side-stepped an incoming strike and proceeded to perform a multitude of backflips before rocketing off into the air so that he could increase the gap between he and his opponent. He still had to think before he went on with his next move.

"Before that slime looking thing started to pour into its body, my attacks were doing damage as they were supposed to. But ever since after, I haven't been able to hurt it in the slightest!"

_The outside is hard to beat._

_But the inside…_

**DING!**

A light bulb flashed over the boy's head. "Got it!" He flared his purple ki before dashing in yet again. "If I can't beat it from the outside. Then I'm going in!"

Raditz watched on, not knowing what to expect next. Wasn't Vegeta already aware of the fact that none of his attacks were working? So why even bother trying to strike it head on yet again?

_There has to be something up his sleeve…_

And Raditz was right. Vegeta did have something up his sleeve.

Vegeta watched as the Acidian's mouth opened wide as if he was going to have willing food. The young Saiyan warrior happily took the offer and rocketed into the creature's mouth.

Raditz watched as Vegeta entered from the outside and shot right out from inside like a bullet going through glass. Blood spewed from the Acidian creature and caused it to let out these weird gurgle sounds. It was choking and choking bad.

Vegeta, while in the air, turned around, and fired off an energy attack yet again. This time, damage had been done and it was way more than enough to get rid of the biggest threat on the planet. The thing blew up to literal bits on impact, with blood, puke, bones, and organs flying everywhere all throughout the skies of Planet San'en.

Like always, Vegeta took genuine pleasure in his own work, seeing it a beautiful sight as to how his latest victim died.

"A picture is said to be worth a thousand words. But memories...they're priceless." Vegeta smiled.

All of this was like cake work for him. Vegeta believed that he'd have this mission done in two days but by how the ways things were going for him, he felt that all he really needed was one day now. If he had to guess, his father underestimated the amount of time in which he could efficiently get the job done.

Raditz was quick to run over toward Vosa, who could be seen lying with burning smoke emanating from her very body. Parts of her body had flesh torn off and others were mostly third degree burns. Raditz slid down on his knees and swiftly picked Vosa up off her back, holding the girl in his arms. "I think she's still alive! She's breathing!"

"Well isn't she lucky," Vegeta replied sarcastically.

"How much do we have to do before we can leave?"

"You two have to do nothing more," Vegeta told Raditz. "It's best that the both of you just take your leave now."

"What? Why?"

"Because I said so!" Vegeta shot back. "You're going to deny direct orders from your prince?"

"N-No, Prince Vegeta."

"That's what I thought!" Vegeta pointed his hand out behind him. "Head over to the ships or call them here if you have to!" He then started to ascend off the ground. "I'll go ahead and take care of the rest by myself!"

Without sharing another word, Vegeta flew off, leaving Raditz and Vosa to themselves.

As he flew off, Vegeta had an insanely displeased look on his face. Having seen those two in action, he just realized something.

"Those low-level fools will only slow me down on my missions. If I'm going to get strong like I'm supposed to, then I ought to go on missions solo. I get the most challenged that way and my chances of growing even stronger increase far more! Hehe. This is something I must run by father. There's no doubt in my mind that he'll see things from my point of view and accept."

Vegeta now knew what his next move was going to be.


	11. Rapid Learning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot performs on Planet Ga-oh, I mean, Planet Emem.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 11**

**"Rapid Learning"**

* * *

_The boy's inexperienced, so there are bound to be mistakes. Can't cost for too many though otherwise he'll die rather fast. I certainly hope the kid is a quick learner._

Sure, Kakarot was strong enough, as well as smart enough to kill that bear some time ago but that scenario compared to him going through with his first conquest was synonymous to comparing a bicycle to a car. This was a very big step forward.

_He's going to be raw in his attacks._

For the entirety of their trip toward Planet Emem, Turles would either spend his time eating, teaching Kakarot how to properly utilize and read a scouter, or sit back and think to himself about his present situation and damn near every step he'd take next. He barely had any time to sleep though he didn't mind. He didn't need all that much rest in order to conquer this dump of a planet. This world, as well as a few more to come, would be stepping stones for Kakarot's development into a Saiyan warrior.

"Hmmm…" Turles stood up from the pilot seat in the front section of the ship and turned around. The automatic doors in front of him opened as he prepared to exit. He walked past the middle section of the ship and headed for the back, where Kakarot was resting.

The kid, much to Turles' surprise, could be seen holding a ball of chi in his hand. Judging by what he saw, Kakarot was getting himself familiarized with the usage of ki. This was a green flag in Turles' eyes. Kakarot was so busy focusing on making floating balls of ki that it took him a moment to notice that he had company. Once he realized that Turles was in the same room, Kakarot closed the palm of his hands. "We almost there?" he asked.

"We'll be arriving shortly, kid." Clicking his scouter, Turles started to get a read on the boy's power-level. "The average power-level there is recorded to be nine according to scouts. You're virtually twice as strong as that." Turles then grinned. "This should be a cakewalk but I really wish to see how you handle your opponents."

"We just go from planet to planet to fight?"

Turles nodded his head slowly. "Technically, yes. We go from planet to planet to fight but it's for a reason. Every single world has its own personal set of resources that could be of benefit to any outsiders. This planet, from my understanding, has something of use but it's not the environment, but rather something the inhabitants possess."

Kakarot did manage to understand a bit. The more and more he hung around Turles, he caught onto his diction, though he couldn't help but wonder just what these Ememians had that they could need. "What could it be?"

"You'll see soon enough."

* * *

Outside under a rocky bridge that stood above a large group of small cloaked people, whom were all having a rather special get together. Now, despite there being well over 500 people, this didn't imply that the Ememians had a rather large population in general. Of these five hundred people, only one of them ruled over the rest: their leader.

Their new and first leader, in fact.

He was the only Ememian that stood alone as he locked eyes with every single one of his citizens that stood before him. Like him, they all took a rather ambiguous appearance. They all wore black cloaks that camouflaged them in the great dark skies of Planet Emem, which had a lackluster amount of stars. It'd be hard enough for any foreigner to traverse through the area but luckily, their bright red eyes permitted them to have 20/20 vision in the dark. Today was not only a special day for their new King, but for the fact that a prolonged eclipse was also on tonight's agenda. In other words, it was going to be absolutely pitch black.

Though small and still in the infant stages of their growth as a species, they adapted very quickly. They even had guns, though not very advanced technology.

"TO CELEBRATE, WE FEAST!"

The natural vocal chords that the Ememians possessed were of a very high pitched tone. Their height gave off the perception that they were like little kids and their tone of voice only reinforced the possible notion that they actually could be children. So for them to all yell proudly in unison as a response to their new King would make it appear as if they were a giant assembly full of prepubescent individuals at an elementary school.

"So, march!"

* * *

The grass was tall and the silence within the atmosphere put every single person at ease. The only sounds that resonated through Planet Emem's atmosphere were the stomps of a ten legged meaty creature that stood well over 20 feet tall. The color of this enormous beast was white so it stuck out like a sore thumb not only in the day time, but the night as well. Unfortunately for said creature, the Ememians, who all stood at around three feet, discreetly made way through the tall grass that towered over them.

The leader was the one guiding a group of 50 men, precisely ten percent of their population. They had others around the area, though they were in the trees nearby. Many Ememians were scattered out in the vicinity on their hunt, as they already planned out how they were going to capture this beast, despite its size.

The giant horned animal had no eyes, so it merely relied on its whiskers for survival. The Ememians were aware of this and so they used a special fragrance to mask their scent. This permitted them to creep up on their target without the innate concern of having their cover blown. The hunted animal was totally unaware and because of its ignorance, it was going to fall.

The leader pointed his finger out at the giant beast, signalling for his subordinates to fire. All did as ordered, shooting off little laser like beams simultaneously. As soon as the attacks landed, the beast rose off its front five legs, howling out in a pained cry. Its first instinct was to run, so that's exactly what it did. Despite how big and bad this thing was, it like most sentient creatures, had fear of the unknown. Due to not being used to this form of attack, it panicked—badly.

Caring not which direction it went, it merely worried about escaping to freedom. Unbeknownst to the animal, there were others that had set up a trap. By stepping in a small hole, the entire ground seemed to have caved it. It fell down into a net that was placed under the covered hole. As the net was strong enough to hold this beast, there had been those within the trees that shot out bows with paralyzing substances and deadly poisons that they concoted with the use of their very own environment. As aforementioned, these people were small and just growing as a race, but they adapted fairly quickly.

It roared and cried out but to no avail. It had been caught and its hunters all celebrated as they managed to make a successful capture.

Everyone grouped together to look over what they managed to catch. Many were mesmerized by the size of this thing, as it was the biggest catch they've ever had.

"It'll take us months to finish this thing off…" one of the Ememians mumbled.

Many were virtually hypnotized by the size of this thing. To think that they'd really be cooking huge giant chunks of this thing that'd last them weeks . Some others weren't. One of the individuals, who was ready to go home, looked off to the side. Just from afar he saw a blazing light that came crashing down at insanely quick speeds. "Look!"

Heads started to turn and questions began to rise. Meteorites crashing was never an often occurrence and it had been witnessed by very few. "Whoah! That looks like a flying star!"

"And it lands on my special day," the leader said proudly. His bright eyes gleamed in delight. "We will all be bringing the food back. I want a group of men to go ahead and check that out. This just might be another present from the universe."

"Yes, sir!" Five men didn't hesitate in taking charge and all dashed out. Despite their tiny figure, they were also insanely fast on their feet. It would be very little time wasted for them to get over to the crash and then back home.

* * *

Kakarot stood in front of Turles as their ship opened subsequent to landing. For the first time ever in his life, the young boy was on a world different than Planet Vegeta. Turles looked down and noticed that the kid was stuck, perhaps overcome by the sensation of utter novelty. He put his hand on Kakarot's head so that he could snap the boy out of his little trance and get his attention.

"What you feel right now is a special moment. You're embarking on a Saiyan's destined journey. Once you've travelled to many worlds this feeling will naturally fade, but just try not to forget the feeling of your first time. This is apart of what makes conquests special." Moving himself past Kakarot, Turles was the first one to touch down on Planet Emem.

The gravity was so light that the dark-skinned Saiyan felt as if he was the weight of a miniature feather. Asides the gravity, the very first thing he noticed was just how black it was.

_Now I've been on some planets that have required a flashlight for a certain amount of time, but this? This is ridiculous!_

Though he knew about the planet being darked, he didn't have any idea that it would be such. There were no signs of stars, just dark, dark clouds that coated the entire planet. The only bit of illumination that could come from their area at the moment would be either a flashlight and/or a ball of ki. Turles had good eyes and thanks to his many conquests, has gotten used to seeing things most non-combatants don't. However, despite that, he had a very hard time making out certain objects, such as deciphering whether something on the ground was a rock or a round insect.

"I can't see!"

Turles looked over his shoulder and moved his eyes around a bit until he could figure out where the boy was. "Relying on sight will be useless for you. Walk towards my voice."

Doing as instructed, Kakarot slowly started to walk toward the older Saiyan. He continued to do so until he bumped into Turles and then stopped. "What do we do?"

"What have I been teaching you to do?"

The boy quickly caught on after being asked. "Oh." He clicked the scouter over his left eye in hopes of getting a reading. The device beeped and beeped, though he was unable to get any signal that happened to be nearby.

 _Of course you're not going to find anything if you don't move your head_  around.

"Make sure you look over your shoulders and behind you as you're trying to find readings," Turles reminded.

Kakarot slowly motioned his head from side to side. By the time he turned over to his six, the scouter immediately stopped beating. "Got it!"

"Hm?" Turles looked over his shoulder. Before he could even spot the targets that Kakarot got, said child was already recklessly firing energy attacks out the palm of his hand.

The Ememians that spied on the two Saiyans from afar all maneuerved away from the attacks as quickly as they could. Unfortunately, one of the five got hit and dropped dead. Kakarot continued to fire off but came to a stop when he had gotten knocked down on his behind from an unexpected blast to the chest.

Turles heard banging gun sounds and acted quickly on his own accord by smacking them away with general ease prior to ascending into the skies. Instead of jumping into the action, he wanted to see just how Kakarot would manage this. "How strong are they!?"

Kakarot got back on his feet and spoke the numbers that he read. "Nine," he responded.

Turles just grinned. "Then you've got this. Piece of cake."

_Just be smart about how you carry yourself. Don't rely too much on the eyes, boy._

The scouter beeped again as an alert, indicating that someone was coming from behind. Kakarot was quick to turn and fire an energy attack from the palm of his hand, hitting his oncoming assailant at point blank range. A high-pitched scream came from the struck individual before it fell dead directly by his boot.

While happy to get a kill, Kakarot didn't have time to celebrate. He had been struck yet again, this time from behind. The kid went sliding through the dirt due to the blast's impact, though luckily enough for him, the armor he wore was a good set and prevented any fatal injuries; though it didn't mean that no pain had been felt.

"Remember! Don't rely on your sight! Your scouter is your best friend in moments like these!"

Kakarot was up on his knees, eyes faced at the ground. He knew that they were all surrounding him, waiting for the next moment to strike. He knew Turles was right so, he instead, went on to depending on his scouter for help. The kid realized why it was a good option because not only did the device read one's combat power, but it also had their location pinpointed whenever locked on. And if they got closer, then the numerical distance increased as well. All Kakarot had to do was truly look at the number and try to strike with perfect timing.

The device indicated where his nearest target was coming from and Kakarot waited for the numerical distance to lower until he made his next move. Just when the Ememian was mere yards from behind, the young boy turned around and punched the creature directly in the stomach. Kakarot rendered a blow so powerful that blood leaked from his victim's mouth prior to keeling over—dead.

"Now that's how you do it!" Turles yelled. He watched as Kakarot continued to deal with the rest, a huge proud grin plastered all over his face. The bodies all started to drop like a horse trying to catch falling angels with its hooves. All figured that they had the advantage of the darkness to use against Kakarot, but the boy adjusted in his own way when it came to combat against these creatures. None realized that the device over his left eye was what gave him the upperhand, and because of their ignorance, those who charged at Kakarot merely waltzed right in to their own deaths. In no time, there were a handful of bodies down below near the boy's now bloodied boot.

"I beat them!" Kakarot exclaimed.

"Indeed you did." Turles ruffled the kid's hair. "I bet that there are far more around, though."

"You think?"

"Yes." Turles pointed to his scouter. "Use yours to find out where the others are, Kakarot. Once you get a reading of a group of power-levels within the same area, you attack, understood?"

The boy just nodded. "Mhm!"

Without sharing another word, Kakarot took off into the sky, following the direction of which his scouter led him.

_The boy's a quick learner. Good._

* * *

There had been a group of rocks placed in a circle with sticks, branches, leaves, and any other flammable material available for them that allowed the Ememians to start a fire. Above the blaze was a giant piece of meat that had came from their most recent catch.

Dozens of people all hopped around and hummed out loud harmoniously. The leader was the center of attention above all as his followers praised him. Despite the fun times that they were having, he couldn't shake off this uneasy feeling that laid dormant in the pits of his stomach. He ignored it so that he could enjoy the moment but the more he did that, the more he felt as if something was insanely off.

Turles, who took a completely different route than Kakarot, had made it to the area faster than the child. He had been watching over this group for just a while now and couldn't help but laugh to himself at their blatant ignorance.

"Here they all are, having the time of their life, with no knowledge of the fact that they're going to be dancing in hell very soon...hehehe."

**PIP**

From the very moment that Turles' scouter had made a sound, said Saiyan made sure to briskly turn the device off. He didn't want to make his presence known to the rest, so Turles was fortunate enough to not be seen by those below. "Kakarot must have arrived…"

Out of the corner of his eye, Turles spotted Kakarot crouching down on a giant rock that was held up high by a solid pillar piece that rooted from the ground. Thanks to the big heap of fire providing some source of light, Kakarot was able to now rely on not only his scouter, but his eyes as well. Seeing so many people put a smile on Kakarot's face. He was going to make his first big mark.

Slowly, Kakarot raised the palm of his hand up until his palm was close by his ears. From his small palm, a bright blue ball of energy appeared. His eyes darted from person to person, trying to figure out just who he wanted to hit. There were so many people at once but only one energy blast to throw. He wanted to give off a big impression.

"Ah, well. How about this?" Kakarot stood up on his feet and fired off the ball of ki at the backs of one of the Ememians. No later than when that person was hit, many more attacks started to follow. Kakarot rendered a plethora of ki attacks at as many victims as he possibly could, disturbing the peace with a near insatiable pleasure.

Screams came from those that were helpless and for those that were capable of doing anything, had all been struck and killed before they could take any form of action. Kakarot was relentless with his attacks and the only people that loved it happened to be the only two Saiyans present on this world.

Turles watched with a big wide smile, also making a great effort to hold back laughter. Call it sadism, but Turles couldn't help but find utter amusement and diversion from fates being sealed by either his hands or the hands of one of his own. The weak had no sympathy from him.

The leader looked on in absolute shock as to how his people were being blasted from existence by the second. His time of witnessing the deaths of his own people didn't last long though as he, too, soon found himself running away from the attacks that were just falling all over the place.

Turles, as he looked on, made sure to observe. Because of this, he was quick to catch on to whom would potentially be Kakarot's biggest threat. He noticed that one of the men specifically was holding off very well. "He's evading all of Kakarot's strikes with minimal effort." Turles didn't need a scouter to realize that this person was stronger than the young Kakarot, but he was curious as to how much stronger this person was. With the click of his scouter, Turles got a reading of 42.

Kakarot only stopped until the last person left could be seen standing, breathing heavily out of sheer anger and disgust. Kakarot hopped down from the rock, landing on both feet with a wild, wide and toothy, animalistic grin—as if his tail swaying side to side wasn't obvious enough that he loved every single second of this genocide.

"You….you monster!"

Kakarot stuck his hand out as he started to run towards the leader of Planet Emem. He fired attack after attack from the palm of his hand while he got closer and closer. The Ememian pulled out a gun of his own and fired to counter each of Kakarot's attacks. Once Kakarot got close, he was smacked across the face with his gun and kneed him in the stomach prior to being elbowed him in the back of the head.

Kakarot came down with his face in the ground, in a little puddle of blood from one of his many victims. The gun was put to Kakarot's head not even a second after he had fallen. The kill was ready to be made. "I don't know where you come from but I'm sending you right back!"

Kakarot started to hyperventilate. The kid sniffled and sounded as if he was also crying. "I-I'm sorry…" he then came out with a hiccup. Kakarot looked up to the leader with teary eyes and a nose full of snot. "H-He made me do it!" Kakarot shakily pointed his hands over to Turles, who was watching the entire thing in the air.

Turles' eyes widened in surprise.  _Is this kid actually serious? One moment ago it's as if he's getting a true kick out of this but the very next he's crying out of lament and sorrow?_  This was far too sudden, which left Turles befuddled, though only momentarily. Once he saw that subtle smile from Kakarot's dark face, Turles decided to play along.

"Yes, it is I who made him commit these atrocities." The older Saiyan descended down until he touched land. The last Ememian, figuring that Kakarot was no longer a threat, pointed his weapon directly at Turles. "But I'm not going to finish what has been started by someone else."

"Then you die," King Emem bellowed.

"No, you do!"

Kakarot jumped up from the ground and dug his nails into the Ememian's shoulders prior to driving his teeth into its neck, biting as hard as he could. And immediately after, Kakarot scooped out the man's eyes with his own fingers. This elicited a pained and hollowing yell of utter agony.

Turles couldn't help but put his head back and release a hearty laugh full of sadism. "You got fooled by a four year old! Hahahahahahahahahahaha! You...hahahaha...You deserve death, you pizzle! Hahahahaha!"

Though far stronger than Kakarot, the Ememian was unable to see. This cost him dearly as Kakarot was now able to beat on him badly without much successful retaliation. The eyeless Ememian took wild swings but since they were reckless, Kakarot was able to avoid them and counter with his own. At first, the attacks merely felt like little tickles but they started to build up.

The punches and scratches and bites that tore his flesh elicited yells and screams that resonated to the heavens. Unfortunately, for this King of a lost land, nobody was able to hear its screams.

"The kid is no ordinary quick learner," Turles spoke to himself. "Make yourself appear as if you've capitulated. Once the impression is sold, attack and conquer. All done to an absolute tee." It wasn't anything but what, perhaps a week or so ago, that he was teaching Kakarot the same principles back when they were still on Planet Vegeta?  _Not only has the boy retained my advice to him but he's used it first opportunity he received._ "Well done, Kakarot. Well done."

By the time Kakarot was done beating on the Ememian until its cloth was off its bony body, the boy looked back up to Turles, awaiting the next order. "What now?"

Turles reached into his armored chest plate and took out a big empty bag. "Their eyes. They can be of use when it comes to worlds like these. Scoop as many as you can and be sure to bring them all back to me in this bag."

The boy nodded.

* * *

By the time that the two were back inside the ship from Planet Emem, Kakarot made it an objective to eat to his heart's content. Turles exited the room from the front to check up on Kakarot. He wasn't in the least surprised to see Kakarot eating up so much after his brilliant performance back on Planet Emem. Hell, if anything, he deserved everything little bit he ate. "So, boy, did you enjoy your mission on Planet Gawake?"

"Mhm!" Kakarot nodded his head. "Why did we have to take their eyes?"

"Because their eyes are made of material which allows any being to see during even the darkest times of night. If what's in their eyes can be applied to scouters, we'd have no need to utilize flashlights anymore. And more credits open up since spending them on a multitude of flashlights won't have to be the case any longer."

"Ohhh! So that's what Gawake can be profited from!"

"Bingo!" Turles snapped his fingers. "You did well and even applied what I taught you, Kakarot. I knew your mother made the wrong choice with keeping you home. You're destined to grow into a fine warrior when you become of age. Fate is a hard thing to avoid so it's best to merely accede to destiny rather than oppose it. Wouldn't you agree?"

Kakarot, while licking his fingers as he ate his fine meal, bounced his head up and down in agreement. "Yep!"

Turles then smiled. "Good…"


	12. A Saiyan's Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bardock searches for Gine.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 12**

**"A Saiyan's Love"**

* * *

"Hey, Bardock, don't think too much of it. She's probably home right now making you a little special somethin', heh."

After completing their mission, Bardock had filled his peers in about the current circumstances—well somewhat. He merely told them that Gine went off to go look for their second born and ever since, she has yet to respond to him. Now that he was in ship with Toma, Totapo, and Selypa, on his way back home, it became easy for the others to notice that Bardock wasn't in a very good mood. They continued to aggravate him, pressing Bardock on; they probed him to figure out what was wrong. He held back at first but he, inevitably, did acquiesce and give enough details. He didn't express any worry through his words, though that was already painfully obvious by his demeanor, which he tried to keep subtle.

"If she managed to get Kakarot back safe and sound, she would have let me know." He didn't know why, but he couldn't just shake this uneasy feeling he had down in the pits of his stomach. Ever since Bardock had his first ever gut feeling as a youngster, he made sure to always listen to his intuition, simply because his gut was right and due to not listening to it the first time, he paid for it dearly. No matter how anybody tried to make it seem like everything was alright, Bardock knew for a fact that it wasn't. He just didn't have any hard display of evidence to prove that things were out of the ordinary. The Saiyan's gaze hardened as the familiar look of Planet Vegeta became visible to the naked eye.

_Almost home._

Once the squad's ship had touched down on Planet Vegeta, Bardock hopped out with what left of rations he had and started to head back without sharing an single word with his comrades. Toma and the others could sense the urgency from him and they all knew better than to try to say anything to the scarred warrior so they just let him be.

All they could do was hope for the best. If something was truly wrong, then...oh well—shit happens; nothing was to be taken by surprise from their way of life.

"Hey, Mister Bardock!" a young face from afar called out.

Bardock turned around to face the person who called out for him. It was a short and skinny Saiyan, who couldn't have been more than 25, with a notepad in his arms. It became obvious he was the replacement for Taro, being a Saiyan that kept track of certified combat assignments and anything else relative to off world travel. And just by looking over him once and hearing his soft voice, Bardock came to the conclusion that this man had never touched a single other grain than that of Planet Vegeta; he was just another lower-class Saiyan.

"Hey," Bardock just waved at him before turning back around to carry on his way. The youngster wanted to keep talking but the seasoned warrior showed that he wanted no time for a soft chat. He knew how boring some jobs could get but he just couldn't care less-especially in any moments like these.

As for any other person that respectfully greeted Bardock along the way, said Saiyan would simply acknowledge his peers with a simple nod, wave, or a mere grunt. Some immediately noticed he wasn't in the social mood but the younger Saiyans were a bit slower when it came to realizing this fact.

"Gine!"

Bardock turned in to where Gine worked during the day time, hoping that he'd lay eyes on a working woman as he typically did subsequent to coming back home from a mission or more. When he got there, he also expected to see his child working alongisde Gine, but much to his dismay, Bardock laid eyes on Gumeel, who was teaching her young daughter how to work in the meat distributor business.

He made sure to thoroughly check every available room inside the home before going to Gumeel as his last option. Given that those two always worked together, he was sure that Gumeel would ultimately know where Gine was if she had taken off somewhere. Hoping that she'd at least had some type of answer, Gumeel had been asked about her co-worker's whereabouts.

"Where's Gine?"

Gumeel had shrugged her shoulder, having no clue herself. "I don't know! She hasn't been here in weeks!"

Personally, she was worried sick about the woman, too. While it was unlike a Saiyan to be concerned for another, Gumeel and Gine had got somewhat close through their years of working together. When distributing meat, the two would have conversations and even while on break, they'd express themselves to the point of where they shared their own fears, desires...and  _needs_. Also, ever since that incidental night with Kakarot, the two bonded a little. As much as she'd love to go out and explore space in an effort to find Gine, Gumeel knew it'd be foolish. Upon weighing the pros and cons of such an action, she'd knew it'd be best to stay here, especially since nobody else would be able to look after Elery, simply because the child's father doesn't give a damn.

"And Raditz?"

"He's off world somewhere. But he told me that his mother took off to go looking for Kakarot. I do hope he comes back home, too!" She could see on the man's face that he was extremely uneasy at this point. No matter how hard of an act Bardock tried to put on, she knew for a fact that he loved Gine, as rare was it was amongst their people. She personally admired that, as it was to show that even the hardest of people on their world could have that special someone to tune them down a bit.

"Tch!" Bardock stormed outside of his home, stopping the very moment that the warm sun's heat pierced against his light bronze skin. Whenever his mind got to racing, he'd start thinking out irrationally so Bardock made it imperative to always keep a level head.  _Think. Be cool and use your brain._ If there was one thing he didn't like, it was acting outright on impulse. He only did such when he was letting his own intuition guide him, but other than that, he didn't take very much pride in being a simple-minded fool like much of his own people.

The very last bit of contact he managed to make with his mate was via scouter. Now if she still had a hold of the same scouter which she used to make contact with him all those weeks ago, then he could track her down. If her scouter was broken in any fashion, then it would all be null.

_Why didn't I think of this before? Too damn worried, that's my problem!_

While he wanted to kick his own ass for not thinking about this sooner, the Saiyan didn't dwell on it and got right to business. Bardock manually used his scouter to start tracking down Gine's last set location. It didn't take long for her whereabouts to come out at all and it did indeed show that she was on Planet Gawake.

With his sights on that Planet, Bardock decided to head out. "I'm on my way, Gine."

Bardock took a turn and walked all the way over to where the ship he landed in earlier was being properly moved to a stationed area. The father of two carried himself behind the young Saiyan that oversaw who arrived and left the planet—the same young Saiyan who shouted his name just mere moments ago. Upon nudging him on the shoulder, he got the man's attention and spoke to him.

"I need an attack pod coordinated for Planet Gawake. Mark it down in your pad, too. I'm going to conquer it."

"Ah? Planet Gawake?" The male started to shift through hundreds of pages in the listed notepad. He had absolutely no knowledge about Planet Gawake, so he continued on flipping through countless pages, much to Bardock's annoyance. A wide smile came upon his face once he managed to find it. "OH, Planet Gawake! It's one of the most coldest planets out there! You sure you wanna go?"

"Do I look like I'm in an indecisive state of mind?" Bardock asked sarcastically with a bit of edge in his voice.

"Ah, haha!" he started to sweat a bit. "Of course not! Don't you wish to know a little bit about the planet before you go out?"

"So what? It's cold. I know more than enough."

"Oh...well then. I'll make sure your pod is ready as soon as possible."

* * *

Not once for the past few weeks did Bardock manage to get even a half hour of rest. Gine and his kid had been in the back of his mind for far too much at this point. He had a feeling that he'd had to get to the bottom of everything but truth be told, he had absolutely no problem with putting matters into his own hands. At the end of the day, he merely wished for his mate and son to be back home safe and sound. He couldn't ask for anything more right now. He'd rather be off-world putting his own life in danger as he virtually does on a daily basis while his mate and son were at home instead of being somewhere else and not knowing if they were secure or not.

**Pip**

"Hey, Bardock, you there?"

_Toma._

Bardock answered the call. "Yes, Toma. What's going on?" He didn't expect a call to come from any of his comrades at all. He certainly hoped that they weren't in trouble, either, given that Bardock already had his own hands full with urgent familiar matters.

"I know you're busy and all but we just got an update revolving around Planet Kanassa."

"Huh?" Bardock was sure that they took care of Kanassa a while ago.  _Why is this planet being brought back up? Didn't we conquer that world?_  "We already took care of Kanassa."

"Yeah, but it was in the middle of being sold and come to find out, there's still hundreds of people left over on that planet. I don't know how it happened. Some say they were hiding in some special spot but regardless of how there's so many survivors remaining, the job is still incomplete. Makes us look bad if I'm to be completely honest, heh! You gonna be able to make it?"

"Sorry, but I'm not," Bardock answered truthfully. "Can you and the others take care of them without any deaths? Or do I really have to tag along with you all?"

Toma just chuckled. "Nah, we've got this, Bardock. We'd be better off dead if we didn't manage to take care of a handful of weaklings. Besides, this is personal for me now, so I want as much blood on my hands as possible."

 _Right. Taro._ As it seemed, Toma seemed to be doing just fine but with that last statement, Bardock realized that he still hadn't gotten over his brother's death completely. If Toma really wanted to stack up as many bodies as he could, then Bardock would give all the power to him, if he could literally. "Toma is back in form, huh?"

"Hahaha, always am, partner. You find Gine yet?"

"No, but I'm about to."

"Good luck out there, then. Let me know what's happened when it's all said and done."

"Sure."

Bardock ended the call.

He proceeded to fold his arms and remained with a hard stare as he passed up star after star in his space travelling ship. It was only a matter of time before he made it to Planet Gawake so he kept his eyes open and refrained from falling asleep. He had the only intention of getting his life partner back home but since he took on the assignment anyway, he had no other choice but to do away with them all.

* * *

The harsh cold winds of Planet Gawake didn't faze this warrior in the slightest. Throughout all his ventures and conquests over the years as a solidified Saiyan combatant, Bardock has come to face many harsh conditions and managed to survive them all. Agitating? Sure, but still tolerable. Regardless, a little cold wasn't going to stop him. He wasn't going to stop breathing until he found out if his woman and kid were safe and sound.

Bardock didn't waste any time and shot off into the sky at full speed. The skies were dark and foggy but the Saiyan knew how to make his way through this type of climate, even through the night. His only objective was following Gine's scouter signal, which was still on thankfully. Though already knowing he'd get no response, he still tried to call in anyway, but to no avail.

From afar, Bardock noticed how there was a huge bonfire that stood well over 15 feet tall, surrounded by giant hairy humanoid creatures that happened to fall asleep. Taking the opportunity of them being absolutely unaware of their own surroundings, Bardock made sure to be as quiet as possible.

The climate got insanely harsh at night so the loud winds coated any other sounds that came out from afar. While Gine had been heard on her arrival here, Bardock was fortunate enough to appear at night. Still using his scouter as the only source to find his mate, Bardock discreetly flew from hut to hut.

**PIP**

_25_

Gine's power-level was far higher than this yet he had reason to believe that she was inside. Deciding to take a chance, he entered.

Upon making his first step into the hut, Bardock was instantly hit with a wave of near overbearing warmth. There was a cozy fire smack in the center of the hut which was used to keep the children and its parents that slept cozy. While for them it was normal, the fire was unusually large to the Saiyan, who was an ant amongst giants in this world. Their size didn't fear him though, since they were all on average so much weaker than he.

The walls were coated with the skins of their prey as well as heads and a myriad of various different forms of weaponry that they utilized to capture and fight. Bardock noticed a room straight ahead that had a skin blanket blocking the entrance. From catching a glimpse of that blanket, a knot tied in his stomach.

_She has to be there._

Bardock, in order to remain as quiet as possible, ascended off the ground by mere inches so that his feet didn't make any noise with each and every step. He cautiously floated over to the room that he was sure that Gine was placed in. The closer that Bardock got, the more his nerves started to rack. At this point he didn't have a good feeling at all but he was going through with it.

Once his hands came into contact with the skin blanket, he paused, then took a deep breath. Upon removing the blanket from his sight, the very first thing that Bardock laid his eyes on was a pot being boiled and a bucket with blood leaking from underneath right next to it. The walls had pliers, scissors, weirdly shaped objects of all kinds, and whatever else. Bardock already got the idea of what took place before he even turned to look over at Gine.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Gine's clothing and her scouter set on a counter, untouched. Anything that Gine brought with her didn't appear to be of any use to them but she was all that had been required so that they could have fun with their new toy.

The warrior Saiyan had seen a lot of fucked up shit in his tenure as an active warrior and he's done ten times worse himself. This was the first time he had ever gasped in his entire life.

"G-Gine…"

The woman was stripped naked of her clothes. Pieces of her skin were torn and hanging as other pieces had been removed from her completely. There were marks—no—scars over her body. Lines of lashes and welts and infected bumps could be seen all over, mostly filled with blood. The wounds that did heal appeared to be re-opened and constant. Of the many times that they had been intimate together, Bardock had a perfect visualization of what Gine looked like without her clothes. Here, she wasn't even recognizable. He could tell it was her by her tail, though that had been shaven off completely, showing a long appendage that looked like cut meat. She couldn't do anything to fight against the torture she was forced to endure as she was handcuffed with her arms up, dangling like a pig getting ready for slaughter.

Bardock ran over to grab the woman, eliciting a shriek of pain from her. Bardock was quick to cover her mouth so that she didn't alert the people nearby, though it pained him to do so. All he had to do was yank the cuffs so that they broke. Once her hands were free, he softly sat down with Gine in his arms.

He could feel her body weak and limp, as if every bone inside her had been forcefully removed. Her privates were stretched and her tongue sliced, but not entirely cut. Just by touching her made her howl in pain but she tried to suppress the noise.

"Gine...I'm here...I'm here."

Death was something Bardock swiftly brought to all of those he killed in his lifetime. Torture was never something he had really done as a way to please a sadistic side of him that he never had, so seeing this really put a shock to him—for it to be the woman he loved—of all people. He just wished he could pinch himself and wake up from this nightmare.

But he couldn't. This was, after all, reality.

"I'm…"

"H-Here…" Gine's eyes widened as she looked over this man's face. The only two people she could ever bring herself to think about these past weeks were Kakarot and Bardock. So much time had passed on that it felt like years had gone by since she seen her baby boy. For this reason, she mistook Bardock for her second born. "K-Ka…"

"It's me, Bardock…" the Saiyan gulped down hard. Adrenaline pumped into a Saiyan's body when they prepared to fight, but this was different. His heart was pumping hard at the bottom of his stomach and he didn't know anything else to do but hold her. "I'm here, Gine...I'll bring you back home. E-Everything is gonna be okay." Upon getting no response, he shifted himself. "Okay?" the hand he used to wipe her tears involuntarily trembled like never before. He was never this nervous.

Was it nerves?

No.

Fear.

Bardock was afraid.

Afraid that he'd lose the only person that ever made him love.

"Stay with me now, Gine. I'm here. You know everything's okay when I come for you. You know this…"

"I…" Gine's body tensed at the pure effort of trying to speak. "I l-lo…"

She opened her mouth to try and try to speak the words but for the life of her, she just couldn't. Bardock knew what she wanted to say and he wanted her to say it so that he could say it back.  _Say it, Gine. I want to hear you say it again. Maybe...maybe this is the last time you will._

Everytime she told him those words, he'd either brush it off or respond with a hug—if he was in a good mood. Now with the true realization that he may never get to hold her passionately as he had before, he wanted to say it back. He needed to.

"C'mon…" he softly shook Gine, pushing her on to speak. "Say it..."

"I love…" She tried her very best to say it, but her strength had been fleeting by the second. The only thing that had kept her alive so long was the hope of seeing her son or husband again. So...her eyes just rolled to the back of her head. Despite trying to say it a multitude of times for it to be heard, Gine constantly repeated the same three words over and over in her head. She said it so much that she came at peace with actually passing on.

And that was it.

The Saiyan was there with his wife's limp body in his very arms. Gine appeared to be a mere shadow of what he remembered her as and he  _despised_ that this was how he could only last reminisce about her. She shared a fate far worse than those he slaughtered and he felt as if she was undeserving.

He could feel his head start to pound. The very tired eyes he had started to get heavy; not because of drowsiness, but because of sorrow. Tears started to swell and the emotional need to cry was coming to overwhelm him.

But he wouldn't dare let himself cry.

Bardock suck those those tears right back up and kept them from falling down his cheek. So he just stared at his wife's pupiless eyes. As he gazed on, his eyes narrowed. He took deep quick breaths so hard that the flame going on within the other room was being touched. Goosebumps took him over and the very hair on his head stood up on end.

His building sorrow had been replaced by utter rage.

Bardock had completely forgotten that his woman's limp body lied in his arms and just got up on his two feet. His gravity defying hair didn't want to stay down and he remained with clenched fists as he drove his feet into the ground as much as he possibly could.

" **YOU'RE ALL DEAD!"**

Bardock let out a ferocious battlecry, one with so much force and hatred behind it, that the roar of a suppressed Oozaru echoed through the heavens of Planet Gawake. The very grounds of the planet shook, causing many to wake up. The hut he was in, as well as many others surrounding him, had all trembled violently. Tools and mounted heads fell off the walls and people woke up full of bewilderment, concern, and some fear even.

The very first person to balance themselves off the shaky grounds and enter the room Bardock was in, had his head immediately detached from his shoulders from the moment it entered. Bardock glided through the room, decapitated the children and anyone else inside as well prior to taking it outside and charging at anyone or anything in his sight.

The Saiyan had the power of a raging Oozaru oozing from his very soul but he didn't notice, nor did he care. All the Saiyan saw was pure red. Destruction was the only thing on his mind. To inflict the same pain he felt just mere moments ago was now the objective. To hell with selling this planet at a valuable prize. As far as he was concerned, everything was going to be burned to the ground. The Saiyan couldn't give a fuck if he got caught up in his own mayhem or not.

Blood had been spilled. Necks had been snapped—hearts broken. Tears were wept and pleads of mercy rang out through the skies. If this world were to have any merciful God, it sure as hell didn't show up on this tragic day.

Despite being smaller than the vast majority of the inhabitants of this world, none proved to be any threat to Bardock at all. The Saiyan stood atop a few dozen bodies, far above ground. His face, hands, knuckles, legs, and chest were covered in blood, flesh, guts, and anything else that he managed to break apart and ruin. His body felt numb so he didn't feel or taste the blood that was in his mouth.

He had caused entire genocide but he wanted more. As he stood atop the insane amount of bodies, huffing and puffing like a mad wolf, he just hoped one more person would stand up to him.

**PIPIP**

Bardock's blood soaked scouter sounded out, bringing his attention to this oncoming entity. Before him was an individual who appeared to be just as angry as he.

The power reading was comparable to his own strength, so Bardock knew that this was the strongest person here.

While sane for a split second, his rage took over once more. He wouldn't be satisfied until every last Gawake native stopped breathing.

Without a second's hesitation, Bardock zoomed in on his target, fist cocked back as he yelled at the top of his lungs.

The most vicious battle in this Saiyan's life had commenced.


	13. When life gives you Lemons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prince Vegeta asks his father for solo missions, which is met by some skepticism. Raditz gets some bad news. Bardock has a set-back and Kakarot continues to learn while under Turles' wing.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 13**

**"When life gives you lemons"**

* * *

Prince Vegeta walked through the corridors of the royal building of Planet Vegeta, accompanied by the one and only: Kuni. Her jocular comments disguised with a dry tone tended to get on the boy's nerves, but he couldn't do anything but tolerate her presence as she had been assigned personally by the King to keep track of his progress.

"Working out on solo missions is dangerous enough in itself as a mere thought. A Saiyan's chances of survival working on solo missions drop down 50%. Hoping to do so for an extended period of time means chances of survival are next to slim—likely none even." After having gotten word of the prince's desire to go out and handle assignments on his lonesome, he was met with some skepticism by the young clone. As soon as she was informed of this, Kuni didn't hesitate in informing him of the statistical information that came along with it. "History shows that all the others who have tried to take on missions by themself don't really last very long. They'd be lucky to survive out there for over a year. There's a reason why even the best of your warriors still go out in groups. It's risky on its own to have just three people out there on the frontlines. Even your father makes sure to go out there with his best warriors when the need calls for it."

"All of these numbers, data, and statistical information you always spit out." Vegeta's eyes slowly veered off to her. "They speak on a general basis, correct?"

"Well, yes," Kuni answered.

"And since it's on a general basis, we're also referring to the average Saiyan, right?"

Kuni understood where Vegeta was getting to before he could even solidify his stance on the matter. "Yes."

"You forget I'm no average Saiyan," the young boy stated proudly. "A mere child and I've surpassed my own father as the now strongest Saiyan alive. People believe that I am the only one that possesses the potential of becoming the first Legendary Super Saiyan in hundreds of years. I'm way above basic statistics so spare me the nonsense."

And Vegeta was absolutely right. He wasn't just like any other Saiyan. Out of not only the Saiyan army, but Freeza's entire force as well, Vegeta would still be considered as one of the very top elite. With his confidence and abnormal strength, perhaps he really could handle himself out there on his own, but that didn't eradicate the absolute fact that it was still high-risk.

The sound of extra loud footsteps thumping closer and closer caught the attention of Vegeta and his peer. The ringing sounds of jewelry that also came along with it was the sure sign that King Vegeta was making his way over to them both. Before the King even got there, the prince turned around and bowed.

"I see you two have been expecting me," King Vegeta greeted.

The prince rose from his knees and acknowledged his father's presence with a nod of respect.

"Come. Let's walk to the dining room." As the three walked, they made sure to speak to one another in as low a tone as possible. Not a single soul was nearby in the vicinity and all made sure to not hold any electrical devices with them such as scouters so that they were assured nobody listened in on their conversations. "What is it that you wish to speak about?"

"Me going on solo missions."

"Solo missions?" the king repeated. Those two single words coming from his son's mouth caused the man to quirk his brow. He had a decent amount of experience in combat and was strong but there were still so many unseen things out there in the universe. The Prince just turned nine recently and despite the conquests he has made thus far, he had yet to face the same level of adversity as his father—being that he lacked the needed experience. Sure enough, King Vegeta felt that his son would at least need someone a bit older to help along the way. "And the thought of this being a bit too much has not occurred to you, my son?"

"On my most recent assignment, I've noticed that the people I'm partnered with are just far too weak—so weak that they genuinely restrict my own progress. I realize that those below me—mid-class and low-level—will only slow me down. If I am to go on solo assignments and fight by myself, the challenges will be even greater. The progress in which I develop as an overall true warrior will be much more quicker. And by the time that I am a full grown adult, I'll be the most complete Saiyan you'll ever lay your eyes on."

The young prince then stopped and turned his back to the entrance of the royal dining room. The very smell of the foods from behind the door was enticing enough to make the kid just barge in the room and get to eating but he had enough self-control to finish his piece. "Besides, you do need me as strong as possible as soon as possible in order to... _liberate the people_ , correct?"

King Vegeta glanced at Kuni before he looked at his son, who had a dead on stare. What was understood between father and son needed not an explanation, especially with the presence of company. He nodded his head, crossed his arms, then cleared his throat. "Why, yes. I'll have your two current comrades reassigned elsewhere while you go out on solo missions." Despite coming to an agreement with this, King Vegeta was still rather uncertain about the entire idea. Regardless, he didn't want to display any sign of doubt in his son and decided that he would at the very least, give the boy a true chance at proving his self-worth even more.

 _What a piece of cake._ "Glad we're on the same page, father."

* * *

**BOOP...BOOP...BOOP…**

Raditz could see Vosa inside the rejuvenation tank and even hear her heart being monitored but his mind was elsewhere. He couldn't help but think back on the time at Planet San'en. He was sure that Vegeta had his back no matter what, that he could depend on the prince for saving him when it came to missions like those. Here he had to rely on Vosa, who couldn't even get better treatment from their own prince.

The boy hated the fact that he kissed up to the very person who couldn't see him as anything but another roach at the bottom of the prince's boot. He thought he was something more.  _Damn him!_  Raditz, one of the strongest Saiyan children asides from Prince Vegeta, was pretty much treated like lower-level trash, something equivalent to his little brother. Back on Planet San'en, he got to see Vegeta's real colors. The Prince didn't care about anyone but himself. Hell, maybe that was why he was so strong in the first place.

**GURGLE GURGLE**

**BEEP BEEP**

**BEEEEEEP**

"We're losing her!"

Raditz was shoved aside by a group of doctors that all ran into the room so that they could tend to Vosa, who seemed to be losing her strength. The long-haired Saiyan just watched on as the medical staff went to work. A few were on their monitors, making alterations to the rejuvenation tank so that it could possibly save her. The others were preparing syringes and anything else they could inject to prolong her life.

"It's her blood!" one of the other doctors pointed out. "She's poisoned and her cells are unable to fight against it!"

"An acidic cell has entered her system and is wiping everything away as we speak. It seems our treatment is only accelerating the process."

"So she can't be saved!?" Raditz asked.

One of the amphibian looking doctors let out a big sigh. He slowly walked over to the control center of the healing chamber and aimed his finger for one circular button. Raditz wasn't very well informed with medicine or how the doctors worked, but he knew that the simple push of that button would shut the rejuvenation chamber off. The liquids went to draining and Vosa's heart beat slowed down until it inevitably came to an absolute halt.

"Sorry, sir. There's nothing more we can do for her."

And just like that, this was the third partner Raditz had lost to combat. Not even ten years old yet and he was losing valuable pieces to his team. Could it be that he was next in line? Hell, how many comrades would he lose in the field of combat before he ultimately passed on? The very thought sent a chill up his spine.

"Well…" Raditz coughed into his fist. "What are you going to do with her body?" The Saiyan boy did his best to remain composure and show that he didn't really care at all. That's what Saiyans did anyway, right? They couldn't show any signs of weakness—especially to outsiders—those who were under the impression that Saiyans were the most undaunted and invulnerable species in the Universe.

"Feed it to the animals that are hunted down on this world. Better source of filling for those that work here."

"Oh."

"Are there any valuables you'd like to keep?" one of the doctors asked. As soon as he asked this question, he received dirty looks from his peers around. The doctors knew Saiyans well enough to see that they couldn't truly care about any deaths in their team. Hell, the Saiyans as a whole appeared to be an entire race that lacked a moral compass.

"Sure," Raditz answered. He then pointed over to the counter, his finger aiming directly at a white band. "That armband. I want it."

"It's yours."

Raditz walked over to the counter, grabbed the accessory, and wrapped it around his left arm. Unlike Bruss and Sprout, Raditz actually took a liking to Vosa, despite not knowing her very long. She was cute, laid-back, and above all, strong. He felt that she didn't deserve to go out the way she did so by keeping something from her, she could continue to fight on with him in the battlefield.

_This feels stupid but right at the same time._

The kid didn't even have an appetite and decided that he could make do with very little rations he had left until he arrived back home. As he walked through the halls of Planet Freeza 33, he received a call.

**PIP**

" _Raditz, you there?"_

He noted from that low, gruff voice that it happened to be his father. Very seldom did Raditz receive a call from Bardock unless it was of some importance. "Yes, father, I'm here. What's going on?"

Hours had passed since the incident on Planet Gawake and Bardock was in his ship, headed back home upon being healed on a nearby Freeza Planet. After his harsh battle and near death experience, the man had a lot of time to himself to grieve and he was now back to a calm state, though it didn't mean that he was over it. Losing Gine was like losing a piece of himself. " _It's about your mother. She took off to retrieve Kakarot from Planet Gawake. She thought Kakarot was over there but I looked over every inch of that planet and didn't find Kakarot. But...I did find your mother."_

"How is mother doing?" Raditz asked. The kid couldn't care about anything else. He just hoped that she made it back out okay. But by the way Bardock spoke to him, Raditz could already tell that good news weren't coming his way.

" _You know I won't sugarcoat anything so I'll just tell you how it is: Gine is dead."_

Raditz's eyes widened. Not once in his lifetime did the very thought of his mother dying so soon occur to him. He always imagined Gine working to old age and dying in her sleep; peacefully. Hell, he always had it thought out that Bardock would be the first to go if anything. Once Raditz got into his ship, the boy sunk into his seat, letting out a deep breath. "D-Dead?" His brain felt so numb that he didn't even know if he could speak correctly.

" _Gone,"_ Bardock confirmed. " _If you ever want to visit her, she's buried on the highest mountain of Planet Gawake. I have her undergarments buried there, too. Just letting you know.."_

Knowing that he was going to cut off the reception, Raditz spoke out before his father could carry on. "Wait a second!"

" _What is it?"_

"The day that mother took off looking for Kakarot, she got into contact with somebody saying that he's got a hold of him and that they're on Planet Gawake."

" _But I told you that I looked all over. Kakarot wasn't anywhere to be found."_

"Then he lied!"

Bardock fell silent a bit, thinking about the situation before responding. He didn't even know that Gine had got into contact with somebody who was with their son. Now it all made sense. " _Thanks for letting me know, Raditz. Whatever you do, stay out of this and follow on with your orders. I'll get to the bottom of this myself...eventually."_

As much as Raditz did want to jump in and try to find the culprit responsible for his mother's death, he understood. "I trust you to find out the truth."

" _Good. Also, don't assume that Kakarot was in on this. He loved Gine just as much as you do_ — _probably even more. The poor kid probably even doesn't know what happened yet."_

"Alright, father."

The call was then cut.

Raditz looked up at the roof of his ship and let out an exasperated sigh. "There's nothing worse that can come out of this day…" The food that he did plan on eating, wasn't going to be digested at all at this point. Raditz felt sick to his stomach and closed his eyes, despite knowing that he wasn't going to be able to get very much sleep on his way back home.

**PIP**

_Really, another call?_

"Young combatant, Raditz! We have a mandated report for you."

"Yes, what is it?"

"You will no longer be working alongside Prince Vegeta when it comes to combat missions. From now on, you'll be assigned to another band of soldiers, making up a squad of four. Their names are Korn, Jaga, and Dane. Your scouter reception has been given to them so that they know where you are at any ti-"

Raditz ended the call, grabbed his scouter, and slung it against the wall of his ship. Was the universe playing some practical joke on him? Just to top all things off, he had to be kicked off Vegeta's team.

He couldn't help but flare his nostrils as anger within him continued to rise. His own prince really doubted him so much to the point that he was removed from the squad!? He just couldn't believe it! If there was a chance to become apart of the noble group of soldiers, it was by fighting alongside Vegeta. Yet now he's just been pushed back into a band of low-level soldiers. The fantasies he had put himself in—as far as fighting by Vegeta and being his top combatant—had all but plundered.

Pitiful.

If Vegeta was really going to doubt Raditz, then the young boy had no other choice. He had to deal with the cards handed to him so that he could overcome.

_I'll show you, Vegeta…!_

* * *

"I can't believe this little brat really has us going from village to village just to look for him!"

Three Saiyans had been walking from house to house with the sole purpose of looking for their new addition to the squad: Raditz.

These three weren't very recognizable by their Saiyans peers as they were pretty much never home. They hopped from planet to planet and used the inhabitants they killed as sources of meals through their travels to another planet. It had been years since they ever had a genuine home cooked meal and their armor reeked of various difference odors. They didn't care and only seeked for the next planet to do battle on. But before they could do that, they needed to finish this idiotic wild goose chase that tested their patience.

Jaga was the short and bulky bald Saiyan of the group. He had three parallel scars that went down diagonally on his forehead. He wore a strapped armored chest plate and some ragged, baggy pants.

Korn was the only female of the group. She was rather fancy looking with her hoop earrings and purple baggy skirt, though the color of her earrings had changed from that of gold to a dark brownish due to the countless blood she had spilled on battle. What made her look even more classy was her weird poofy, curly fro like hairdo.

As for Dane, he was just original looking. The Saiyan had hair that stood up and leaned to the side a little. He had a couple bangs and a birthmark that went from the very bottom of his eye down to the end of his cheek. Most mistook it for a scar. He worse a strapped on armored chest plate like Jaga that was colored green with dark blue undergarments and basic combat boots.

Dane, chewing on a piece of grass, didn't say a word. However he was agitated just like Korn and Jaga was because of the lack of communication coming from their new comrade. If it was up to them, they'd just take off without the brat but it was smart to avoid any trouble that came with possibily leaving the boy.

"He should live just right over here," Korn said, pointing at a nearby meat distributor.

The trio started pacing a bit faster until they stopped before Raditz's home. Inside was both father and son, accompanied by Gumeel, who was working alongside her daughter.

"Which one of you are named Raditz?" Jaga asked.

Everyone, including Bardock, who was having a one on one conversation with his son, looked up at the three unfamiliar people.

Raditz got up from his chair, walking over to them. "That would be me. Who are you?"

"We're the people you're going to be working with from now on," Jaga said gruffly. "I'm Jaga, this is Korn, and that's Dane. Got it? Got it. Good."

Though he was supposed to be focused on their new recruit, Dane was unable to take his eyes off Bardock, who could be seen sitting at the chair, staring right back at him. Though Bardock was internally questioning who the hell this person was, Dane himself already knew. "All of you, go right ahead and show the kid the ship we'll be leaving in."

"I know you don't think you're going to try and skip off on us showing this brat how we do things."

Dane scoffed with a bit of laughter as he shook his head. "No, of course not. I just wish to speak to...Bardock."

"You know my father?" Raditz asked.

"Yes, but he doesn't know me. I doubt he cares who I am anyway." He looked back to Jaga and Korn. "Carry on. I'll be with you in a bit."

As he stood at Dane, Bardock couldn't help but feel as if he was looking into some type of mirror. Granted, they didn't look identical but their facial structure was all too similar. "And you might be?"

"Little Raditz's uncle." Dane crossed his arms. "Long time no see."

 _Brother?_ Bardock chuckled. "Since when did I have any siblings?" Bardock always knew there was a possibility of him having siblings but the man was far out of touch with his own family. Just like any other Saiyans's, his mother nor father gave a rats ass about him so he stuck with that and did his own thing.

"Since forever. I was never around though and it seemed that you went off as soon as you could walk on two legs. But my, it's been a while. If not for the hair, then I would have passed you off as some other low-level bootlicker. Last time I've seen you and the twin, you were babies."

"That's nice." Bardock sipped on a glass of water, not really showing any shock. "If you ever see a young kid with the same hair as mine, let me know. Name's Kakarot and I haven't a damn clue of where he could be at."

"What the responsible parent you are," Dane joked. "However, I doubt I'll be seeing your lost kid around here. I'm never home." He then placed his hands on the table. "By the way, get used to not having your eldest around here, either. You see, the way we do things as a crew, we hop from planet to planet. Only time we come back is when we're low on fuel. We use that time to get cleaned up, maybe get a few rations, and sell off all our completed assignments at once. Your chances of seeing your own kid are bigger than mine."

"Hmp!" Bardock downed the rest of his water. "And you say I have a twin?"

"Yes. There were quite a few of us but most died off. As far as I know, there's very few of us left, Bardock. The last one I saw was Turles, but like you, he took his own route once he came back home upon completing his conquest as an infiltration baby. I'm surprised you two never ran into one another, after all these years. I hear that twins are supposed to have close connections."

"Turles, huh?" Bardock closed his eyes.

He recalled one of the last true conversations he had with his late mate, Gine.

" _His name is Turles. Does it ring any bells?"_

"I heard of him but I never seen him myself. I was told he has the same hair as me?"

"Twins. That's the only best way we can recognize one another. He's a little darker but at least you know it isn't just you." Dane turned around. "So long, Bardock."

"Bye."

So Bardock just sat there, thinking to himself. How was he going to go about getting to the bottom of this. While not a very social person, Bardock realized the only way that he could figure things out would be speaking to others and asking where they last saw his son and who he happened to be with. As much as he'd hate to have to do this, he figured this was the only way to go about things.

He barely remembered how his battle on Gawake had ended. The last thing he remembered before blacking out was being removed of his bloodied clothing and put into a rejuvenation chamber. Bones were broken and his body just felt numb—mere moments away from death.

**Pip**

" _Bardock, you there?"_

"Yes," Bardock answered. "What is it, Toma?"

" _We're over here accompanying King Vegeta. Pumbukin and I have put our increased powers on display after finishing up on Planet Kanassa. We've been promoted! Now we're just waiting for Totapo and Selypa. You need to come over here, too."_

"Got it."

Bardock knew that there was one thing he needed to prove so that he could be promoted. And despite just having a full on death battle, the Saiyan had this urge to fight some more. He felt stronger but now was the perfect time to see if he really had the worth to be amongst one of the best.

* * *

Toma, Selypa, Totapo, and Pumbukin all had on a fresh set of capes, indicating their new class upon being promoted. Each and every single one of them had a proud smirk on their faces, just astonished by the fact that they've managed to achieve their goals. Now it was all just Bardock's turn.

King Vegeta was there, with his son as well to watch on.

"Did anyone scan his power-level before he entered?" Prince Vegeta asked.

"3,360," King Vegeta answered.

This caused the prince to furrow a brow. The Saibaimen he was faced up against had a power-level of a mere 3,000. Compared to Bardock's current power, the favor was ultimately in the Saiyan's hands, where victory for him would be most certain. "What is the point of having a showcase if the numbers show that he is strong enough to be promoted? That doesn't make any sense."

"You focus  _too much_ on the power aspect of things," King Vegeta told his son. "While very important, this is also a testament of seeing how efficient he is in battle. A person twice as strong as his inferior can still lose a battle if they're incompetent. No matter how strong a person is, incompetence is inexcusable. Even you should know that, my son."

Prince Vegeta crossed his arms and scoffed. His father was most definitely right. His explanation even reminded him of Raditz and Vosa's actions on Planet San'en. Had they not been so reckless, they wouldn't have been put in situations in which they needed someone elses help.

_All because of incompetence. Hmp!_

In the training room of which Bardock was being monitored, the Saiyan could be seen cracking his knuckles. "Well, let's get this over with."

"KeKe!"

Bardock hopped from the ground and flipped upside down prior to touching the ceiling. He bounced off with his foot and dashed down at the Saibaimen, punching it directly across the face. The force of impact had it leaning over, so Bardock ensured that it went down by rendering the creature a solid roundhouse kick across the face. As soon as the Saibaimen went sliding on the training room floor, Bardock rushed in and rammed the tip of his boot into the thing's spine. Once it crashed face first into the ceiling, Bardock caught it with his hands. With the Saibamen's back in the Saiyan's palm, Bardock finished the fight by sending a blast directly through the center of its stomach.

After making quick work of the Saibaimen, Bardock tossed it away, turned around, and started to walk toward the exit. "Not even a decent warm-up…"

"Damn, Bardock!" Toma exclaimed. "Not wasting any time at all, are you?"

"When do I ever?" he responded curtly.

King Vegeta clapped loudly, impressed by the Saiyan's display of skill. Bardock's approach to battle was very synonymous to his: ending it as soon as possible. Sure, every now and then, Vegeta loved to express superiority over his enemies but when he wasn't outright humiliating them, he made his victims' death swift. "Nicely done. Let us walk back to the throne. From there on, we can establish business."

Bardock and the others all followed King Vegeta and his son from behind, all as quiet as mice while they walked. The only sound that came from the King during their light travel was a little sigh as he made his way up the steps before sitting down onto his chair. "Everyone…" he started, speaking to his other subjects. "On this very day, we have four entire new promoted subordinates. You all are already aware of Toma, Selypa, Pumbukin, and Totapo." He proceeded to point at Bardock. "And he is the last piece that makes up of their team: Bardock. Being a mid-class soldier is the closest to royalty any of you will ever get, so take pride in this."

Bardock, being as aware was he was, kneeled down with a tilted head. "Thank you, King Vegeta."

"And here you are awarded with a piece of cloth," Toma joked as he clamped Bardock's new cape onto his shoulder pads.

"Not just any piece of cloth," Prince Vegeta corrected Toma. "That cape is a showing of how much of a true Saiyan warrior you really are. Wherever you walk from now on, people will know that you're made of the very best."

"That's exactly right, son. And we don't just show we're the best on the battlefield, we do so at home as well. Be professional and do think before you act as you are all in public. Your actions are a reflection of the entire noble class and if you make us look bad, we'll make you look far worse before hundreds of eyes. Are we all on the same page?"

"Yes, sir."

King Vegeta smiled. "Good." In less than the span of half a year, King Vegeta managed to gain five total new mid-class soldiers—four of them being thanks to the Super Saibaimen. There was an era before where it took a few or a handful of decades until an individual was ready for promotion. However, with the rate at which Saiyans progressed increasing as time went on, to have an entire army of mid-class soldiers was an inevitability.

_By the time my son is King, he will most definitely have all the requirements needed to overthrow Freeza. Hell, he won't even need to use the entire class of combatants...just the elite._

He could barely contain his excitement.

_Finally, this is out of the way. Now I can go ahead and look for my son._

"Excuse me," Bardock said.

"Oh, no, stay," King Vegeta told him. "You already have an assignment."

_Already? I JUST got promoted._

Though agitated, Bardock kept his composure. "And what assignment may that be?"

"Zoon assignment. My son has already completed this mission some time ago. He went there with the task of coercing its inhabitants to pledge allegiance to Lord Freeza, who expects them to be groomed to be apart of his Freeza Force in a set period of time. You, Nappa, Zorn, and Selypa are all tasked with the duty to training them into fine warriors."

"An entire race of people?" Nappa asked.

"Sure, but do keep in mind that not many remain," King Vegeta clarified. "My son told me that he faced some objection and had to eliminate the bad influencers before he could get the rest to come to an agreement."

"And how come Freeza isn't able to get any of his own lackeys to do it?" Bardock asked. "Who knows how many lazy simpletons are just wandering about doing nothing special at all. He should assign this task to them."

King Vegeta briefly looked around for a second. Nobody apart from him had a scouter in the room but the King was smart enough to turn it off when it came to conversation amongst his own people. "I see where you're coming from and for the most part, I agree. However, Lord Freeza personally requested that a band of Saiyan warriors get this done because he knows that combat is instilled in our minds from birth. If there are any group of people who can truly mold another race into a warrior one, it is us."

Bardock was grinding his teeth, now getting pissed off. Toma was the only one who could see the aggravation on his face but Bardock was able to hold his anger in well enough to go unnoticed by the rest. He had hoped to be able to go out there so he could find his son. But NO! As soon as things seem fine, he's tasked to go off world for however long just to get some race of weaklings prepared for being apart of the Freeza Force.

"Very well," Bardock said. "We'll get on that right now." The scarred Saiyan then turned around, with Nappa and the others following him. "What a load of bullshit…"

_It's bad enough that I'm not able to look around for Kakarot but Raditz won't be here much at all, either! At this point I can only accept what's going on and let it all take its course. Wherever you are, my son...be strong."_

* * *

The skies were a hellish dark that reeked with fire, death, and blood. There had been clouds of smoke that built in the air. Buildings were ruined, and defense reinforcements annihilated, limbs all around. And though this planet seemed like an absolute wreck, there were two people standing.

"You're getting stronger, kid."

Kakarot sat on a log near a pile of bodies that he personally stacked as his only current source of food. He had been hopping from planet to planet for months at this point alongside Turles. And even though the man was right, Kakarot didn't feel like it was enough. There was always room for improvement.

"I'm still just a weakling," Kakarot responded. "I still need to become stronger."

Turles knew exactly why Kakarot felt this way.  _The elite, mid-class, and low-level system is just dumb. It took me a while to realize this but it only makes young warriors feel as if they won't be any better, hindering themselves from their true potential. If Kakarot falls into that mindset, then he won't be a proper fit for what I have in mind. I need to convince him otherwise._ "Hmp. If I know one thing, kid, there is no ceiling to a Saiyan's power. For as long as you continue to seek getting stronger, you always will." He then stood up and kicked up dust by stomping his boot onto the ground. "I think about how you tell me that your brother calls you weak and says you can't do this or do that." Turles looked into Kakarot's eyes. "Whatever you do, use his words as motivation to prove that you're not. A Saiyan can only grow stronger through constant battle and this is what you will need."

"Yes."

"By living a Saiyan's lifestyle, we will eventually become strong enough so that we can make an impact out there on the Universe." He turned his back to the kid and looked up at the smoke-filled sky. "Kakarot, right now, the totem pole is disorganized. We're the bottom feeders but in order to set things as they must be, we need to climb to the top. Granted, this will take time, but with dedication and willpower, we can accomplish anything!"

The dark skinned Saiyan faced the young boy, with a toothy grin. "Do you wish to continue this lifestyle of fighting for as long as it takes until we reach our goal?"

Though Kakarot had absolutely no idea what Turles' true end goal was yet, the four-year old truly didn't care. He could only set his sights on becoming stronger and stronger. Turles was here promising that he would become stronger if he stayed by his side, and the kid wanted that more than anything.

"Yes."

And he was happy to have met this man.


	14. Life Support

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kuni's little innovation helps Prince Vegeta accept the bitter truth.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 14**

**"Life Support"**

* * *

"To be what you are yet to have an unusual amount of intelligence above what is expected of you is just something I find all too peculiar. I can't help but figure out what it is that happens to make  _you_  so special."

King Vegeta III never let anyone inside his dining room who didn't serve a particular purpose to him or any cause he believed to be worthy. And he sure as hell didn't allow any non-saiyans in the room, unless it was for a very good reason. Kuni, as not being a Saiyan, was one of the very few exceptions. While a mere clone, her mind was far well above that of any other and the  _why_ behind it all only resulted in King Vegeta finding this young girl as an individual he could authentically admire—to some extent. As this had been in the back of his mind for some time now, he decided to spark up conversation revolving around this very topic; to pick her brain a bit.

And there was no better scene to have this conversation rather than a courteous dinner.

"I don't know," Kuni answered. "As far as I'm aware, I've always been this way." If she had the reason as to why she was just far above the other clones in intelligence, Kuni wouldn't hesitate for even a semi-second in spilling King Vegeta all the details. For as much as she could remember, she was smart and managed to pick up on things all fairly quickly, especially information and characteristics of any individual that she tended to spend time with on a consistent basis. Not only that, though she was able to see things from many angles instantly, while for other people, it'd take some real effort. Everything just came naturally to this young girl.

"Malfunction," Prince Vegeta mumbled. If he had to come wth any conclusions, it'd certainly be this one. Whenever something was usually out of the ordinary - for instance—a scouter giving off the wrong reading—such would be labeled as a mere malfunction. Given that clones were quite synonymus to being utiized as tools, it was only common sense for someone as unique as Kuni to be characterized as a walking malfunction.

"Whatever you say." After placing a handful of small fruits into her mouth, Kuni proceeded to pull out a torn sheet of paper with scribbled notes that she had personally assembled. She looked over what she wrote as she ate on her food and placed the paper down before she swallowed down the remains of what she chewed up. "Have you ever got there and wondered why you have only a few thousand people that make up an entire race of Saiyans?" she asked, speaking directly to the King.

"Easy," Prince Vegeta spoke up. "People are off world basically every day. A lot die in combat and never come back home."

"That's one of the big reasons, yes," Kuni confirmed.  _But it's still more than that._

"You were getting there my son, and it's simple, but it's also deeper than that." The king grabbed a cup of wine and sipped on it. "But from birth, many Saiyans have been sent off. A lot have died before they had a chance to live their lives and even as they age, many perish in combat. It's truly natural selection. Those who truly are strong will survive but we're trying a new method...thanks to a woman. Regardless, it won't fix the fact that we have a small population."

"It's because your death rates far exceed that of your conception rates. It's understandable that a lot of people are always on the go and barely have any time to copulate but if things keep going at the rate that it is, you'll all be looking at barely under a thousand people in just a few decades." Kuni understood where the King was coming from, as such doctrine was expected from the king of a warrior race. But...his logic was still undoubtedly flawed in some ways.

"But surely those hundreds of people will be coupled with the strongest warriors, correct?" King Vegeta inquired.

"Yes," Kuni answered.

"If those few hundred people are worthy, then what's the problem?" Prince Vegeta asked.

Kuni sighed. 'Well, I also understand that you both come from a drilled in perspective of quality over quantity, which is understandable…"

"But?" the king egged on.

"But another main reason why a lot die in combat is because so many die on the way back home after a harsh battle. So if people were to be in proper health in proper time, then the numbers of death would decrease at an expected  **eighty percent** , so the rate at which your population declines slows down and permits the possibility for more people to get there and copulate."

"And how does this benefit us?" Vegeta IV asked.

"What is common knowledge in the medical field is that when a Saiyan recovers from fatal injuries and wounds, their power jumps dramatically. There isn't any set addition in power after injuries as they all vary but if we can import an even better life support system than the one we have right now, then people can come back stronger. Their chances of survival increase alongside their strength, and then so do their chances of finding a mate. On the chance that their chosen mate is also a combatant, said chosen mate will undoubtedly be strong as well. Once two strong individuals come together and copulate, they make for a strong offspring. Rinse and repeat. Before you know it, most of your populus will be at mid-class status. It'd probably be so much that you'd have to establish new classes of status."

This left both Vegeta III and Vegeta IV in absolute awe. Father and son looked one another in the eye for a good few seconds, utterly amazed by Kuni's breakdown of the entire matter. She just watched as they both motioned their heads over to her with a wide smile. Every single word that came out of Kuni's mouth could not be challenged at all and the two royal Saiyans didn't see any genuine point in doing so in the first place. Everytime Kuni came up with a new idea, she was looked upon as someone with more value than the previous day. Vegeta III and Vegeta IV had identical looks of approval.

_They definitely love the idea. I knew that all i had to do was give them a little sample of the concept and they'd take it immediately._

"Whatever enhanced life support system you have in mind, let it be known right now," King Vegeta demanded.

_And once I break down the real nitty gritty, they_ _ **won't**_   _deny it._

Seeing that both the King and Prince had their attention all on her, Kuni took this opportunity to start running her mouth like a chatterbox, speaking on the insane idea she had for a new life support system that would help prolong many more warriors lives on Planet Vegeta. The more and more she spoke, the more intrigued the King had gotten. Despite the fact that she wasn't finished, King Vegeta could be seen grinning from ear to ear, eager to get everything started. Through all his years as a royal Saiyan, Vegeta III never seen any Saiyan scientists - from his father's era, nor his own - as bright as Kuni. Perhaps a Saiyan with an intelligence as remotely synonymous to Kuni's would be far too dangerous to begin with.

"You've said enough," he interrupted. King Vegeta got out of his seat and turned around to make his leave. "I'll make sure to tell your peers to get on this ASAP. After you finish your meal, you'll go on to assist them in this upcoming project!"

"Yes."

With his hands on the dining door's exit, King Vegeta looked over to his son. "And you're not leaving this planet for another mission until her appointed assignment is complete." With that said, he then left. Now things were really looking up for the King. With the super saibaimen, an ehanced life support system, and any more potential ideas from Kuni, the Saiyan race will truly be able to thrive. Maybe it just wasn't his son that he needed to take down Freeza -a young warrior with limitless potential - but a person with inimitable intellect as well.

Prince Vegeta watched as his father left and heard the loud footsteps get more and more faint the further his father walked. Once the king's footsteps were out of range, he then spoke.

"Ridiculous," Vegeta scoffed. "Absolutely ridiculous."

"Hm? What's the matter?"

_Wasn't he just in a good mood?_ After receiving such awesome details about her upcoming project, Kuni at the very least expected the prince to be thankful and somewhat full of glee. Just how could he get to the point of acting as if someone had pissed in his cereal when he was being told nothing but great things.  _He confuses me._

"All of what you said is just far too simple for anyone else to not even think of," Vegeta said, rubbing his chin. "It's pitiful that none of the others actually came up with this and utilized it." He sat there, shaking his head, now having lost his appetite. Truly, there are Saiyans that happen to be considered the most intelligent of their race and yet they appeared to be retards in comparison to Kuni. He just didn't get it. What most of these scientific Saiyans lack in strength, they ought to make up for in brains.

"Well, it would be hard to implement because of the extra financial cost that would be involved in building all the tools required to make this happen, but I do agree with you on the fact that it's pitiful how nobody else has come up with it yet. But, it's really no surprise that none of your top scientists have managed to come to conclusions correspondent to my own."

"Oh, and why's that?"

"Because the Saiyan mind is only capable of so much," Kuni answered.

"I beg your pardon?" Prince Vegeta stood up on the back of the person he rested his feet on as he ate at the dining table. This elicited a pained groan from the slave he stood on but he showed little care. "Are you speaking down on us? Your superiors!?"  _The audacity from this wench!_

"I don't see it as speaking down on you, but merely stating a fact," Kuni clarified.

"Just because my father favors you does not grant you the leeway to speak on us Saiyans as you so please," Vegeta reminded her. "Don't forget I can kill you in half a second if I desired to right this instant!"

"But that wouldn't be very smart, would it?" Kuni asked. The question caused Vegeta to fall silent. Subsequent to giving it some thought, the young Saiyan Prince grunted and sat back down in his seat, nose flaring. Yep, she got him again. "Not only would it be stunting the potential growth of your people scientifically, but your daddy wouldn't be very happy either, now would he? Notice how the more he sees how I think, the more alive he feels. He doesn't just see, but knows that I can help bring you all a step closer to what you really want?"

Vegeta's eyes narrowed.  _And what does she mean by that?_ "...Your point?"

"Getting from under Freeza's control," Kuni flat out stated. "That's all you want and without me, I don't believe you'll be able to achieve that. See, you Saiyans are a warrior race; that means you are meant for combat—not science. It is a simple matter of biology - sexual dimorphism if you will - albeit in a more broader sense—something like genus dimorphism. Sure enough, there can be outliers within your race with a super genius coming about but that's not very likely, is it?"

Vegeta didn't say a single word.

"And even the rare super geniuses of your race don't even compare to those like me." The entire time she spoke, Kuni had kept a straight face. One word had shut down Vegeta's retort (which was now nonexistent) and every word after just made him have one realization after another. Despite Kuni speaking to him in such a tone that spoke of superiority, he knew when he was beat. After a few moments of silence, the clone then smiled. "You'll see eventually, I promise. Just give me a few weeks, huh?"

* * *

And so, five entire weeks come to pass.

A holographic image of a water exoplanet was being scrutinized by the red, devious eyes of none other than Freeza himself. Ever since he came across this Planet called Zoon, he had been more keen on scouting out for other potential species that could come to serve him as well.

And Planet Zame was indeed a candidate.

"If we can bring them in then it will solidify the Freeza Force as being absolutely untouchable," Kikono spoke from across the room. "Not to say that we're in a weak state but who needs Saiyans when we can have the Zamens and Zoon people? We wouldn't even have to use any of our other people for conquest missions! It could just be them! So everyone else can work in other areas and find out ways to further expand the empire."

By the way Kikono spoke of all this, he seemed eager to jump at the idea of recruiting these Zamen individuals to the Freeza Force. He saw the potential promise they could bring thanks to their uncommon strength and was immediately all for the idea, though he didn't come to think about  _all_ the factors, which was what Beriblu did. So while Kikono was all for speaking of every single pro of recruiting these people, Beriblu didn't shy in pointing out the cons of it.

"While I am fond of the concept," Beriblu started, " like any other idea, it still has its flaws. I know the Saiyans are a tired topic, but in order to get the bigger picture, I should start with them. We all are aware of the fact that every now and again they need a reminder of who's really running things since they are a hard headed lot. Once the Zoon people are trained by them, they will eventually come to realize that the Saiyans are not their true rulers—but those that rule them. Under the presumption that the Saiyans successfully have the Zoon people prepared for the labor that comes with the Freeza Force, then the Zamens could easily partner with the other two races. Not only that, but the Zamens have their own official language, which they can utilize so that we don't know what they are plotting. Hmph, even on their own, they're a risky lot to bring in. They're naturally stronger than the Saiyans but they don't have any transformations or sudden jumps in power like they do - scouts show."

Freeza closed his eyes to let out a big sigh. The Saiyans are an opportunistic race, but if there's anything that Freeza learned throughout his tenure thus far, it's that most people in the universe are willing to take the very first shot if it meant for them getting leverage over something or someone. If the Zamens were remotely anything like the Saiyans and even somewhat intelligent, then that could indeed result in chaos, which was what he didn't want for the Freeza Force. Freeza needed things orderly and proper just like his father always ran business. Freeza was still awfully young and a quick learner, but he still hated referring to his father when he needed advice on making any decision of any kind.

"Yes, you are right, Beriblu. It's good of you to bring me up to date on these very facts. With all of that taken into consideration, we definitely don't need these Zamens within the Freeza Force. One of you contact Abo and Kado and tell them to head over to Planet Zame whenever they can so that it may be conquered."

"Someone is already en route to Planet Zame," Beriblu informed Freeza.

_And just who could that be?_ With all the information about the Zamen inhabitants established, Freeza knew that no ordinary being could just go there and take care of those people as if they were a piece of cake. The very fact that he ordered Abo and Kado - his best apart from the Ginyu Force - to work on Planet Zame was an indication of just how strong those people truly were. "And just who may this traveller be?"

"Vegeta, a Saiyan combatant," Kikono told Freeza.

"The King?" Freeza started to laugh. "He sits on his throne more than I do in my hoverchair. It's truly hard to imagine him getting up to actually fight." Freeza didn't even know when King Cold last recalled King Vegeta on the frontlines of the battlefield, so the thought of that old Saiyan getting off his high horse to actually fight was just far too humorous.

"Prince Vegeta," Beriblu specified. "The King's son."

Freeza's fits of laughter had come to an instant stop. "Oh…"

_Isn't the Prince still a mere child? And he, a little boy, is headed to a planet where the inhabitants average a power-level of two thousand? For the King to even allow his own son to go on that planet with the task to conquer it on his own not only speaks volumes about the confidence he has in his son but the potential power that the prince also holds! Ah, no, perhaps I'm overthinking this. The Prince, after all, should be the strongest behind his father. But still...a mere child._

Freeza didn't know what to think of this. From the words of King Cold, even the strongest Saiyans go out in teams, usually making up a squad of five people. Not only was a Saiyan going by himself, but he was a child. Freeza completely disregarded the fact that Vegeta IV was royalty and therefore, naturally superior to most, but still.  _By himself?_ Just how strong was he really?

Freeza turned around with his tail swaying side to side, hands behind his back. "Those Saiyans...sure are making progress."

* * *

Planet Zame was perhaps the bluest world Vegeta had ever bestowed his eyes upon. It was a great, light blue surrounded by bright white and very little green. As he approached the planet's atmosphere, the young warrior began to question if this world even had any form of dry land, at all. The attack pod that carried him to his assigned world didn't register landing for material such as water, though only something concrete such as land itself.

Through the circular glass of the attack pod, it became obvious that more than 90 percent of this planet was made up of H2O. Vegeta looked at the manual control panel of the attack ball and pressed a few buttons. A hole had opened up from above the ceiling of the pod, releasing an oxygen mask, which fell directly in the young Saiyan's lap. The mask already had a set amount of oxygen installed in, so all he needed to do was move the switch on and off as he pleased.

_Looks like most of my time will be spent with the fishes._

Just from the side, Vegeta zip directly passed a giant piece of land—a mountain volcano in fact. The giant piece of land didn't go unnoticed by him at all.  _At least there's something._ Since Vegeta wasn't going to be landing directly on that piece of land, he figured that there was another solid area in which he would make his arrival.

**BAM!**

And so he did.

The machine had let out a lot of smoke and released a slumbering sound as the doors to the aerial ball opened. Vegeta was surrounded by nothing but dark green trees that were all rooted on one medium sized piece of rock that floated above water. Vegeta hopped up from the crater that his pod caused and touched down on the itty bitty island.

The gravitational pull was far much stronger than his own world and it was unsettling at first, though the prince stuck it out. The air was very thin and the sun gave off a sweltering heat. Despite all of this, Vegeta brushed it off. His feet slowly detached from the land below him as he ascended high up with his fingers just mere centimeters away from touching the only button affixed to the device that he wore over his left eye.

**PIP**

For the very first few seconds, Vegeta didn't come across any kind of reading. He mostly scanned around him, above sea level. Once he started to get a quick reading, Vegeta quickly motioned his head downward, directly at the waters that surrounded him.

**"** Hmph." It only made sense. Most of this world was made of water, so of course its top tier inhabitants would have to reside down below. Clutching the oxygen mask that he had in his hand, the prince knew that he no longer had any other choice. He was going down below. Vegeta put the mask over his face and moved the switch before diving straight down into the waters below him.

The atmosphere had changed from the very moment that Vegeta had entered the waters. Much to his surprise, they were very warm and the pressure in the upper-levels of the ocean were far lighter compared to the pressure outside thanks to its forceful gravitational pull. Everything was blue but his vision felt so much clearer. Thanks to the oxygen mask, Vegeta felt as if he could even live on this planet.

**PIPIP**

Vegeta shot off to his left prior to turning around. His scouter pinpointed a live being coming directly at him from behind, so the Saiyan decided to move before checking first. And as expected, it was one of the expected inhabitants of Planet Zame coming in to attack. The being was an anthropomorphic dolphin, who had very well came behind Vegeta with the intentions of attack.

Vegeta's smirk had been hidden by the oxygen mask he wore. "No more than 10 seconds of being in your home, I'm already being attacked? How welcoming!"

The dolphin sounded out various different whistles, grunts, and ticks, all of which Vegeta could barely make out. And even if he did hear the creature properly, he wouldn't be able to comprehend due to it being a different language. Though thanks to using his brain, Vegeta could only come to the conclusion that this thing was calling for backup. Before the thing made another noise, Vegeta had blasted it to hell with the use of an energy attack.

But hundreds of more dolphins and other fish looking creatures alike surrounded the Saiyan Prince in just a matter of seconds. None of them had a power-level less than 1,000, so the boy knew that he was going to have a rather fun time.

Vegeta grinned. "Let's see how shiny your scales remain after I'm through with you all!"

* * *

Alarms were being sent off all throughout the underwater castle of Planet Zame. Guards had surrounded the beautiful abode with weapons in their hand—weapons that appeared to be slim with a leafy piece of material hanging directly out of the barrel of the weapon.

Zame himself was in an attic apart of his throne room, thinking to himself. Despite being a shark person, he had took the time out to learn the language of the many dolphins of his own world. He could hear the cries of many that fell in combat and those that pleaded for more reinforcements. Many of his men - his best men - were dying with each and every passing second.

Zame knew it was a matter of time before he had to take matters into his own hands.

_Never before had we ever had such a threat. The attack of the whales was our worst war and even then, they managed to be beaten by being outnumbered, and only with some of my help. And for them to be dying by the hands of one being?_

Zame ran his hand through the wall of his dark attic. The King of this water world wasn't going to just wait around for their intruder to come to him, for that will only result in more lives being lost. He exited his attic and swam down into his royal room. As he traversed all through the castle, Zame paid nobody any mind, as his only focus was on getting to this unwanted attacker.

* * *

Many sea creatures all floated in the water, with no signs of movement. While most had the luxury of dying in water, others not so much. Vegeta, being the sadistic fighter that he was, would test out how long some would be able to last above water before coming back down to do away with the rest. Some were horrified, most were irate. Though afraid or angry, they were dead.

Vegeta was now surrounded by only a dozen people, all of whom had their weapons pointed directly at him. Not once had he been touched thus far and he didn't plan on it for the rest of his conquest. Once he saw one of them move their fingers to pull the trigger, Vegeta shot backward, keeping his eyes on each and every single victim as they all stung one another with their own weapons. Vegeta couldn't help but laugh out loud at this as he raised his hand behind his head to end them all right then and there.

Before he could swing his right hand forth, Vegeta had been grabbed directly by the wrist. From then on, his scouter started to beep like crazy. As he saw the numbers surpass his own, Vegeta let out a small gasp of surprise.

Zame gut-checked the boy and sent him soaring through the water. He then zoomed above Vegeta and kicked the boy directly in the chest, sending him far down below into the black depths of Planet Zame's beautiful waters. Vegeta flipped over and fired off a blind energy attack, though his expected target hadn't been struck. Because of this, he had been re-directed over to the side with a ferocious kick aimed for the back.

Vegeta was still in disbelief at the power of this being.

_F-Fifteen...thousand!?_  Vegeta flipped around yet again and rushed to where his scouter directed him.  _To think that someone apart from the Freeza Force could be so strong! Tch!_

Vegeta went for a haymaker, but the strike was dodged and he received a quick one-two in the stomach before receiving an uppercut strong enough to send him flying back above sea-level. Though before he could go far, Zame grabbed the boy by his ankle, reeled him in, punched him right in the face with so much force that it sent him flying through the waters like a speed boat despite the intense pressures that resided so far down.

Vegeta heard the crack in his oxygen mask, which was now starting to let in a bit of water.

_Dammit!_

Zame came down back at Vegeta from above, swatting away all the countless ki attacks that the young boy sent his direction. Vegeta prepared a wave of ki that he hoped to propel his enemy in the opposite direction, but he was hit yet again before he could fire off the attack. Vegeta's back went crashing into some rocks far down below underneath. And thanks to the heavy pressure that continued to build the lower he got underneath the ocean, those collisions hurt like a bitch. The pressure started to get to his oxygen mask more as well, which was now on the verge of being breaken off completely.

Vegeta now realized he was on borrowed time. His lungs, while superior to most, could still only take so much. He imagined that he could breathe underwater for five minutes with simple swimming, but these circumstances were far different. He was in the midst of battle! He'd be lucky to last three while exerting so much energy while encircled by nothing but liquid.

The Saiyan removed the oxygen tank and stood right at the bottom of the ocean, charging a special attack. He placed his left hand directly behind his right backhand, which were both near the side of his face, with his right leg up and over his left knee. A great amount of purple energy started to surround the Saiyan Prince. Said boy tensed every muscle within his body as he directed the very chi from the center of his essence through his arms and directly into the palms of his hand. Fighting close range wasn't going to work, and as far as he could tell, none of the inhabitants of this world knew of the utilization of ki. All he had to do was take advantage of this.

He watched as Zame took the bait and came down, shooting at Vegeta into the depths of Planet Zame's very ocean.

Once the shark person was just a few meters away from him, Vegeta shouted loudly, though his words were made incoherent thanks to being underwater.

**"GARLIC HO!"**

While the attack shot off with great, powerful force, Vegeta was absolutely mesmerized by how slow the wave of energy was being pushed toward Zame, who still came at it with his fists cocked back with no care in the world.

_You've gotta be joking!_

It was here that Vegeta came to the realization that the pressure underwater truly did play a factor in his fight. The deeper he got, the slower he moved. This didn't faze someone like Zame, who had this advantage over Vegeta from the very get go. And even still, Vegeta was merely on the verge of eclipsing a power-level of 11,000 while the strongest being here had a battle power of 15,000. All of the odds were stacked against him so he had to shift things in his favor, even if it was just a little bit.

Above water would be his best bet.

Zame's fist clashed against Vegeta's signature attack. The Saiyan prince tried to push as hard as he could, though to no avail. The Zamen had reoriented Vegeta's attack back to the user itself. This time, the energy blast was travelling at a much faster velocity. And due to the pressure that resided below, Vegeta wasn't able to get the hell out of dodge in time.

**BABAM!**

An overzied crater had been formed underwater, with Vegeta lying directly in it. His clothes were in tatters and the blood that escaped his body started to rise up into the water. Zame smelled the blood emanating from the Saiyan and had the overwhelming urge to lunge himself right at him. All his life, the only thing Zame had ever fed himself on were smaller fry. Sure, the taste was succulent, especially when he grew hungry, though he never got the flavor of an outsider—an extraterrestrial.

And even then, the blood of his enemies always ameliorated the taste.

Zame had a cold glare at Vegeta, looking on as if the boy had captured him into some kind of trance. Zame could feel someone incoming as he was sensitive to movement.

_Someone else got the smell..._

Despite his urge, Zame stood there and awaited the person to show himself. And just when this fellow shark being became visible, it was punched with the force of a planet. As soon as it made itself known, Zame made it disappear.

Zame, with his foot at the very bottom of the ocean, walked over to the heavy battle damaged child. He closed his eyes and let the rising blood enter his nostrils, giving himself a warm and insatiable chilling sensation that journeyed every fiber of his being. Not able to help himself anymore, he grabbed Vegeta by the arm and picked him up, looking directly at his other arm, which was where the blood came from.

"I'll try to keep your head as a reward." He licked his lips.

Being so focused on its prize of a meal, Zame had not noticed Vegeta's tail starting to stick up, as said Saiyan was doing so in an unobtrusive manner. So as soon as Vegeta wrapped his tail around Zame's neck. the boy's eyes shot open, with an insane amount of bubbles coming from his mouth and nose.

_He's still alive!_

Vegeta wrapped his legs around Zame as tight as he could and opened his mouth wide, yelling out loud. Vegeta used every single bit of power he had in his body to elevate he and his enemy. The two rocketed from the very depths of the ocean up until they were out of the water. Once in the sky of Planet Zame, Vegeta had made an effort to kick him away with both feet, sending Zame crashing into the only mountain on this planet from afar.

Vegeta aimed his hand to his side and fired a wave of ki that managed to push him forward until he was right over the piece of land that Zame had plummeted into. Vegeta had came crashing down hard, right on his stomach. Though he didn't realize it, he landed with so much force that a couple of ribs had cracked. He was so focused on gasping for air that he ignored the unsettling pain in his stomach area, until each breath started to pinch his stomach excrutiatingly.

Vegeta coughed, coughed, and coughed until he spat up the water that he took, and even some blood.

Zame stood back up on his feet and dusted himself right off in a nonchalant manner. He didn't mind the heat and the heavy pressure outside of the water but he knew that he only had a set amount of time before staying out too long would be detrimental.

Zame opened his mouth and started to click his tongue at quick speeds. The sounds travelled through the air, into the water, and down to the very depths of his castle. Every single guard and remaining citizen of Planet Zame that lived, received the order to tend to him so that they could finish off their intruder. It didn't take very long for them to emerge.

Before Vegeta knew it, he was surrounded by over 1,500 different people. All of them had set foot on this very mountain, all with guns aimed at him.

Vegeta was on his last wind and didn't have very much energy left. His Garlic Ho was especially charged to have enough power to take out Zame, meaning that his own attack was stronger than himself. To be able to take it head on and survive, while underwater, was all a miracle in itself. Despite being so young, Vegeta had the mind of a sociopath; he was naturally calm in stressful situations. Regardless of being in this dilemma, the Saiyan had an ace up his sleeve.

Vegeta looked up to everyone standing before him, all ready to shoot.

"Before we kill you, tell us who sent you here and why," Zame demanded.

_From being underwater all their lives, I doubt that they'll take very kindly to fire._  Vegeta just grinned. "What's the point in telling you information that'll be useless in the afterlife?"

For a person to look so confident while mere moments away from death had sent everyone in for a loop. It was moments like these that people began to beg to keep their lives or started going crazy just to have an extra second of breath, but not Vegeta. He just laughed at them coldly.

Everyone had to pause a moment to think about what the boy just said. As soon as they came to the realization that Vegeta threatened then then and there, despite his predicament, it was already too late. The young boy had propelled himself into the sky by letting a wave of energy come out the both of his hands. The dry mountain volcano was far too flammable and because of the pressure that Vegeta put up on it, said volcano started to shake.

The shaky volcano caused those that shot at Vegeta to miss. Everyone that had their foot on the dry land all came falling down on their behinds. Fire started to spurt out from the volcano and fear started to set in the eyes of many. Those who tried to get up and jump back down underwater only fell again because of the violent trembling.

Vegeta used the remaining energy he had within his body to carry him back over to the area in which he landed on this world in. He was exhausted and his body started to go numb. He fell down just beside his opened pod and had to crawl himself back into the attack ball. Once he turned around and got seated, Vegeta reached his shaky hands out for the control panel.

_"Initiating life support sequence before set departure for...Planet Vegeta."_

Before, the life support system would have been a simple oxygen mask and few other substances to prolong life but Kuni's innovation was far different—much more of an improvement. Behind Vegeta, a hatch opened, and his chair started to move backward. Inside this little hatch was a tank about the size of the attack ball itself, which was used as a rejuvenation chamber. As he went backward, he couldn't help but smile at the sight before him.

He watched as the people all burned alive before the door closed shut.

If not for this creative innovation, Vegeta wasn't sure if he'd be able to survive this mission.

_I guess she was right afterall._

_Hehe._


	15. Worth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Zoon assignment is continued by Bardock, Selypa, Nappa, and Zorn.
> 
> Raditz feels like he has something to prove.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 15**

**"Worth"**

* * *

Being tasked with something else with more important matters on the mind was all too stressful for Bardock. Despite the fact that he'd wake up early every morning to train these Zoon people for hours on end, he still just couldn't get his son's safety out of his mind. He had no doubt that Raditz was doing fine on his ventures but his concern for Kakarot was unwavering. He wasn't able to help but imagine Gine screaming at him from the otherworld, demanding that he abandon his current assignment to look for his son.

This caused Bardock to turn around and grab at his head. The constant thinking of this topic in itself only increased the chances that he'd get an aneurysm.

"You gonna teach or just stand there!?" Nappa boomed.

Bardock looked over his shoulder to Nappa, who had his own group of trainees. They were all nearby but each split up enough to where their training could go well without distraction. Bardock exhaled deeply, taking in the hot blowing air of the dark, gloomy planet.

Bardock had ten trainees. Some of them were hesitant to fight but for the most part, they suck it up and did what they were told. Ki came easily to these people so all that they truly lacked to grasp was the concept of legitimate combat. Bardock made sure to give them various different scenarios to act out and corrected them as he saw fit.

As of the current moment, Bardock had them act out two soldiers fighting against a total of 8, as an effort to demonstrate team work so that both are able to either win or just help one another survive another day. Upon witnessing the last of the two being punched down due to lack of awareness, Bardock growled under his breath.

"You don't turn your back on your opponent—not even for a second. Do that out on a real mission and you won't live to see the next day!"

"Y-Yes, sir."

He then turned over to the other trainee. "And you...what were you doing?"

The skinny Zoonian got up on his feet, smacking away at the dust he collected over his body. "I was waiting for an opportunity to jump in and save his hide, sir. On the ground as I was, I didn't pose any threat, so the element of surprise was in my favor."

The little annoyance that Bardock did initially had was toned down a bit. Impressed by the young man's battle intelligence, Bardock folded his arms and scoffed with a subtle smile. "Well, it's nice to know that at least some of you here actually use your brain. What's your name?"

"Chupi," the young Zoonian answered. He placed his fist against his chest with his other arm behind his back. "Sir!"

 _This one definitely seems dedicated._ If there was one thing, Bardock would have to watch for this young man's progress. Once they were officially enlisted into the Freeza Force, chances were that this Chupi character would be placed on the very frontlines.  _He ought to turn out fine._

"I told you to do it right!"

A harsh scolding followed by the sounds of ear piercing cries caught the attention of the trainers and trainees from all around the vicinity. Everyone's eyes came to see Zorn with his boot on the face of a child who was forced to remain on the ground, wailing hysterically.

"Kid, you can barely throw a simple jab and you expect to be able to survive out there in the Freeza Force?" Though very impatient and frustrated at this point, Zorn was still able to keep his tone of voice under control. But it was very easy to tell that he wasn't going to tolerate much more room for error any longer, regardless if the person was a child or not. He had no intentions on being soft with anyone. As far as he was concerned, it was the perfect method of weeding out the weak from the strong.

"I-I'm sorry! Sniff, sniff! I'm sorry!"

Zorn wrapped his giant hands around the child's his throat and forced him back on his feet. "Now try again." The Saiyan then crouched down on his knee and pointed at his own chin. "Hit me right here. If you can land a proper strike then you won't have to worry about receiving a broken jaw." Zorn already knew that the kid wasn't going to get it right. He just wished to have what he considered a justifiable reason to sock the kid right in his face, simply because he was getting fed up with him.

"Y-Yes s-sir," the boy stuttered with tears streaming down his cheeks. Fighting through the water works, the kid sloppily cocked his shaky arm back with a semi-closed fist. Zorn could already tell this would be a weak punch and just grinned. Before the kid could even make contact, Zorn had caught his hand. This elicited a gasp from the boy once Zorn had unfairly tightened his grip. Knowing what was next to come, the child closed his eyes, winced his face, and tensed his entire body. "All by your form, kid. I could tell it wasn't going to do much." He clenched his fist and then cocked it back. "Now it's my turn."

He decided that he wasn't going to hold anything back at all. Zorn was aware of the fact that the momentum he had built up despite being in such close range would very likely result in the death of this child but he was very unmoved by the thought of killing a child—especially given the fact that he had done so many times already throughout his tenure as a Saiyan soldier.

Though all the momentum he had built up came to an unexpected pause.

"That's enough," Bardock told Zorn.

Zorn removed his wrist from Bardock's grasp and turned around to face the Saiyan. "I beg your pardon?"

"Give the child some slack. He's going to learn eventually but everyone does so at their own pace. Have patience."

"Heh!" Zorn shook his head as he chuckled. Upon putting his hand on Bardock's shoulder, Zorn got closer to his peer. "We don't have the time for letting everyone go at their own pace. It's either our time or bye-bye. Lord Freeza wants them to be prepared at a set deadline and I'm just making sure it's as soon as possible. I know you and the others don't plan on being here quite long and I sure as hell don't either." Bardock didn't blink or wince not one bit. Sure, Zorn was older and stronger than he, but Bardock displayed no signs of fear in the face of superior authority. Zorn noticed Bardock's steadfast demeanor and made sure to calm down because of it. He'd be a fool to bicker amongst his own over some weakling trainee. "But sure. I'll take it easy on the chap if it stops all the crying." He brushed his shoulders by Bardock and continued away. "All of you back to your stations!"

Bardock stood there and watched as Nappa and Selypa were quick to leave and be on their way back to eat. He let out a little deep breath before he turned around to follow the other three. The only thing worse than having to train a group of people without losing his cool? Cooking.

"First come, first serve, Bardock!" Selypa warned him. "Be quick about it, eh?" Above all, Selypa was main one most ready to chow down. Though nobody commented on it, over the past few months, Selypa had been gainaing a noticeable amount of weight. Her being so big wasn't helping keeping the rations at a stable standard either, which just added on to his aggravation.

"Right…" Bardock huffed. No sooner after he took one step away, the kid he had saved from a beating grabbed him by the arms, which prevented him from making any forward movement.

"Thank you, mister Bardock! I was so scared, I thought he was going to hurt me even more!" He then hugged him. "Thank you so much! I wish you were my teacher!"

This only left Bardock confused. Sure, the kid was young and most likely naive, but surely the boy had to know that he wasn't here to be his friend. He was here to work and that was it. The fact that he was training him and his people to be slaves should give any and all Zoon persons the incentive to hate his guts. While he didn't want to insult the kid in anyway, he wanted to remove himself from the awkward situation as soon as possible.

"Sure, kid." Bardock pulled away from the boy and shot off after his comrades.

This left the boy standing there, watching as Bardock left off. He wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but kids had a knack for knowing who was the purest when they got to know a group of people. Bardock was also harsh but he was still the nicest.

He liked Bardock.

"Hey, Ipu!" Chupi called out. "Come on! We gotta eat and get what little rest we can before those bastards come back!"

Ipu turned around and ran over to Chupi. "Yes, big brother!"

Chupi, while waiting for Ipu to get close, stared at Bardock until the Saiyan was no longer within eyes' reach. He wasn't as naive as his little brother, but he could also tell that there was something more with him. He wasn't exactly like the rest.

_But he's still one of them._

* * *

Since Bardock, Zorn, Nappa, and Selypa were the only true figures of authority on Planet Zoon, whatever they demanded of, had to come to fruition. Any orders were expected to be followed through with no form of objection at all and one of these demands was to have their very own home.

Despite the lack of material that the Zoon people had on their home, they managed to make a fifty foot house which consisted of the planet itself; all stone and rock. With the material known as marble added, their home looked rather fancy. Also, the inside consisted of one dining room in the center of the house downstairs as the rooms were all at the top of the house, one for each person. The Saiyans didn't want for much - merely a roof that they can eat and sleep under - but the Zoon people took it one step further to please them in hopes of receiving no extra punishment.

The smell of food being cooked had Nappa and the others salivating at the mouth. Selypa was the one who was barely able to hold her composure. She had never had a bigger appetite for food than these past few months now.

Bardock, as he cooked the food that the others waited for, could hear snickering coming from Selypa. At first he didn't think anything of it but it soon started to get to him. As he stirred the food pot that was hung above a fire, he turned around to look at her.

"What's touched your funny bone?" Bardock asked.

As soon as he turned around, the woman turned her head away, chuckling still. "I never pictured the day of seeing you wear chef gloves and holding a butcher knife. You're a warrior, and a cook?"

"Very funny," Bardock replied dryly.

"Ya know, King Vegeta could use another butler," Nappa said, getting more laughter from Selypa and Zorn even.

"As the person closest to the food, I can either chug it down my mouth and have it all to myself or throw it at the ceiling and make you all eat like a pack of rabid famished peasants." He looked back over at them with a smug little smile. Upon seeing them all clear their throats and shut up, Bardock turned back to his food. "It's almost finished so have your bowls ready."

"We're running low on rations again," Zorn said. Just a few yards to Bardock's left, there was a cabinet filled with preservatives that they stored all their food in. "This bi-weekly refill isn't enough to hold our appetites. We need to start having food delivered every week, especially if we're gonna keep this pregnant beast content."

"I beg your pardon!?" Selypa growled.

Zorn just ignored her. Nappa and Bardock both wanted to laugh, though they didn't want to stir up any needless squabble. Selypa's mood tended to be all over the place. One day, she's as nice as can be and the very next, she's like a spawn from hell. Her capricious attitude always kept her trainees on their toes, so she was most definitely respected.

"Yeah," Nappa agreed, sticking to the main topic, "and with a larger portion, too."

"Well we just have to make do with what we got for now, boys," Selypa told them.

After Bardock had prepared all their meals, everyone started filling their mouths. The pot of food that could last any other family for weeks had been gone in a matter of minutes. As they all finished their food and chugged down large glasses of water, each and every single one of them let out ferocious burps that would tear down a house made of wood.

"Gah damn!" Nappa exclaimed. "Bardock, you sure as hell know how to make a decent meal!"

"Indeed," Zorn said, in full agreement. "How did you learn to cook this well anyway, if you don't mind me asking? I just find it quite odd that a Saiyan who spends most his time on battle conquests can manage to find time to cook a meal that could give King Vegeta's butler, Ail, a run for his money."

"It's really not that hard," Bardock said. "Asides from that, I had someone who showed me how to make things happen in the kitchen whenever I wasn't working."

"Gine," Selypa answered.

"Yeah…" Bardock huffed. "Gine."

Just whenever Gine wasn't on his mind, she just had to be brought up to him some other way. Feeling uneasy at the fact that he'd never ever be able to touch his only woman again, Bardock was feeling the urge to just go back outside and resume work. Either that or go off to sleep.

"Those weaklings are starting to get on my nerves," Nappa commented. "They make the most dumbest mistakes and it just makes me want to stomp on them." After seeing what Zorn did today, Nappa felt as if he just might start being a bit more strict as well. Who cares if they didn't like it or not? They didn't have to like their training. Efficiency was all that mattered.

"I know the feeling," Zorn said. Given what had recently transpired, his eyes slowly veered off to Bardock.

Bardock didn't have to look back at the man to feel the hard glare that he was getting from him. Bardock knew that Zorn knew that the latter of the two wished that the former would just let him be to do his own thing. However, Bardock didn't see the reasoning in that method of training, for there were other ways to garner better output from their trainees. "Whatever you all do, be careful of how you treat them. Nothing's wrong with being harsh and pressuring them but with mistreatment comes animosity and resent. They might get ideas and try to take us out."

This elicited laughter from Selypa and Nappa. Bardock realized that they wouldn't take this seriously but something about the hard look on Zorn's face made him believe that the man understood where he was coming from.

"Those bugs couldn't do a damn thing to us," Nappa reassured Bardock.

"Need we remind you that we're the ones training them?" Selypa questioned Bardock. "When has a student ever been the one to kill their master?"

Bardock just shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know and I really don't care. All I'm saying is that we tower over them like Freeza towers over us. You all know just how much a lot of our own people don't even like Freeza and would kill him at the biggest chance possible. I feel like it's the same in this case, too."

As Bardock clarified on his point, Zorn saw that it made perfect sense.  _He's right. Maybe we do need to keep an eye on those fools. They are progressing so if they DO decide to take action, it'd only be a matter of time._ But even still, Zorn didn't see how they would truly be able to harm them. The gap in power was simply far too enormous.

* * *

"No matter what happens, we don't let this fall into any outsider's hands."

Though this was a time for the Zoon people to eat and rest themselves before their continued their training, they instead spent a big portion of the day in a crowded area with Chupi standing in front of a chest that was directly behind him. He constantly lectured them about what's truly important and how that they should never lost their faith. Everything would most definitely come back around, sometime.

They were all in a giant hut able to fit dozens of people. Chupi, the most promising of them all, had his little brother marvelling at the chest. Everyone had gotten to see what was inside previously so they all knew its worth.

"No matter how much those bastards kick us down, our pride is in this chest. Our ancestors have travelled and fought hard to gather these and for us to let them fall into anyone else's hands would spell doom for our people. No matter what happens...this chest remains in this hut. Understood?"

"Yes, Chupi!"

"Good. Now go rest."

Everyone had immediately scattered out the room like a bunch of roaches with a light over their heads. Whenever the Saiyans weren't bossing them around, the Zoon people all looked up to Chupi, their current eldest and wisest, despite the fact that he was a mere teenager—barely fit to be a young man.

"How are you feeling, Ipu?"

Ipu rubbed his swollen eye and winced at the throbbing sensation. "I-It hurts…"

Chupi put his little brother's hands down and grabbed him by the face, though away from the swollen eye. Upon examining it, he let out an exasperated sigh. He hated seeing his little brother like this and it was just all the more reason for him to loathe those callous Saiyans.  _They can keep kicking us down but every dog has their day._  "I'll go find some remedies for you, okay?" Chupi started to get up and leave.

"Wait, right now?" Ipu asked him.

"Yes."

"But you'll be late for training if you go out all night looking for remedies!" Ipu exclaimed. "Those guys will get upset and will probably beat you up!"

Chupi just grinned. "I'd rather take the beating than you have to go out there looking weak and probably getting a beating because of it, little brother. Besides, I doubt Mister Bardock would get there and smash my face in for being a little late. As long as I continue to impress him, I'll be on his good side, no?"

"I guess you're right…" Ipu looked down at the ground. "Mister Bardock is the nicest out of all of them after all."

"He is, but don't let his little difference stray you away from the truth: he's just as bad as them. He's apart of a group that'll slaughter an entire race of people if it meant living another day! They kill people even smaller than you. Remember, they're the enemy, Ipu."

The young boy nodded his head. Chupi made a good point but he just couldn't see Bardock going out of his own way to hurt people, not after what he did today. The man could have let that meanie Zorn keep beating on him but Mister Bardock made sure to put a stop to it.

_But is Mister Bardock really the enemy?_

* * *

Raditz was on his first mission with his new squad in an attack pod. It was only a matter of time before they touched down on their assigned world to wreak havoc. First time jitters wasn't a thing for Raditz at this point, though the kid was still very upset that he had ended up with a simple batch of low-levels when he had been assigned on his first team that consisted of the Saiyan prince and three other Saiyans that were inevitably going to be promoted to mid-class. Raditz expected more for his future as a growing warrior, not less. Not this.

"You ready, kid?" Jaga asked via the scouter.

"When am I not?"

"Apparently a lot," Korn butted in. "I mean, isn't that why you were kicked from your last team?"

 _To hell with_  you!

"I'll have you know that I was working alongside Prince Vegeta!" Raditz bellowed. "He's the strongest Saiyan alive so it's very telling of my potential when I get to work beside him!"

"Got, kid, not get," Dane corrected him. "Remember, we're in the now, not the past. You used to work with him, when he was weaker."

Raditz just growled. "Curse you all…"

"We're not trying to pick fun at you kid," Dane told Raditz, "it's the simple truth of the matter. Prince Vegeta is way out of your league now so he just sees you for what you are: a low-level. There's no shame in the truth."

"Listen to your uncle," Korn advised Raditz. "Your parents are low-levels and your parents' parents were low-levels, too. Whatever you are from birth, you'll be until you die. It's always been that way."

"One can't change their destiny kid," Jaga told him.

 _Why won't they just shut the hell up!?_ "You fools don't even know the story!" Raditz shot back at them. "So if you don't know, just shut your mouths!"

"Then tell us," Dane quickly responded. "What's this story?"

Raditz just growled. When he thought of what took place on Planet San'en, it angered him—made his very Saiyan blood boil. But if explaining them the gritty details meant that they were going to stop picking at him, then he was all for it. "Fine. If you all must know, I was assigned to Planet San'en with Prince Vegeta and a newly assigned combatant. We were at three people on a squad since the new addition had been promoted. We were facing these big underground monster things. Whenever I fell into one of their traps, I was begging for help. Vegeta didn't even go out of his way to save me even though he knew he was fully capable of doing so. It took our new recruit to come to my aid and she eventually got trapped by the strongest one. I wasn't able to save her but Vegeta was. He killed the thing but he didn't do it to save her, he did it just because it was the strongest! He told me to leave so he could have all the fun by himself. She doesn't make it and I get news that I'm off Vegeta's team! That's what happened."

None of what Raditz said came as a surprise to any of the others. "What else can you expect from a spoiled brat like Vegeta?" Dane asked him. Raditz was a bit taken aback that Dane, nor the others responded with any sign of surprise. Surely they saw the inequity in his story! Wouldn't they be just as livid as he? Wouldn't even imagining themselves in his own shoes anger them? At least just a little bit?

"When you're the strongest of a warrior race, your personal expectations of your peers are at a much higher standard. Granted, I wouldn't go out of my own way to save you either, but if I knew I could without risking my own life, I don't see the problem."

"I don't care how much of an honor it'd be, I wouldn't lower myself to working with an entitled child."

"Me neither, Korn," Jaga agreed.

Raditz just huffed.  _Vegeta doubted me and they probably do, too! I'll just have to show them otherwise!_

* * *

The skies were a bright orange color as the clouds appeared to be bright yellow. Its grass was light pink and the air smelled of roses. For the simple matter that this world's atmosphere was so soothing and casual, it'd make anyone feel like they could just kick back and relax.

But not Saiyans.

"Looks like they were expecting us."

No sooner than when they touched down, Dane and the others had been surrounded by a group of cone headed aliens with high-tech weaponry that consisted of guns, shields, and cars that sirened out blaring noises.

"Who are you and state your business here!" one of the inhabitants demanded.

Raditz was the first one to get to business. As soon as he clicked his scouter, a smirk came over the young boy's face.

_Easy work._

The long-haired Saiyan jumped right into action.

As soon as he made his unwanted move, guns started to fire all over the place. Dane and the others got the hell out of dodge as well and started to blast right back at them. Raditz preferred the head on approach and just started knocking people's head loose.

Upon swiftly dodging a laser aimed at his head, Raditz elbowed a man in the face so hard that his neck cracked from the very moment of impact. He turned around and rendered another soldier a plethora of punches and kicks to the face before rocketing up in the sky and blasting the entire area with two energy waves.

Explosions sent a great amount of people flying. As the victims were in mid-air, Raditz zeroed in on as many individuals as he could to send them all back down to their deaths with brutal attacks. The kid was relentless and shot from person to person with such haste that it seemed as if he was on a tight deadline.

"Look at this kid go!" Jaga yelled.

Dane, as he was in the middle of blasting folk, stopped. He looked around a bit for Raditz, unable to find him. "Where?"

"At your six!"

Dane did a 180 to get a view of the boy. Raditz could be seen punching a soldier in the gut as fast and as hard as possible with no mercy. Bones were cracked, screams were forcefully made, yet he didn't stop until the person croaked and dropped dead. Once he was finished with one, Raditz jumped onto his next target. He didn't slow down and kept on at a quick and steady pace, savoring the moment.

"He's just bullying these people!" Korn exclaimed.

Raditz put one hundred percent effort into this assignment. The kid had so much pent up anger and frustration that he couldn't wait to take it out on his next assignment. He was doing so much to the point where Dane and the others stopped to watch him in action.

Subsequent to blasting a hole in the stomach of a female defense member, Raditz turned around. Just behind Dane, Jaga, and Korn, Raditz spotted a group of men slowly sneaking up on them. Before their scouters could alert them, Raditz fired a blast that sent the soldiers all straight to hell.

"You all just gonna sit there and watch or fight!?" the kid scolded them.

This put a smirk on Dane's face.  _This kid does mean business. Hmph. Maybe the Prince was wrong after all._

Quick work had been made of their assignment. Despite the technology that these people held, that and their innate prowess was miniscule in comparison to the Saiyans and their raw force. Raditz and the others all stood on top a curvy rock mountain, looking down below at all their work. They had stacked up piles of bodies. They had been set ablaze and the odor didn't appear to bother any of the soldiers. They were just far too used to it at this point.

"Out of all those burning bodies, I reckon that Raditz was the one who done in with over half of them." Dane patted the kid on the back. "You did a nice job out there."

Raditz crossed his arms and smiled proudly. He had most definitely gotten the hang of planetary conquests. The more and more he fought, the more experience he gained.

"If only Vegeta saw my work," Raditz stated, "he'd see how dumb it was to let me go."

"I see why you were set to work with Vegeta," Korn told the boy. "Your strength is actually a bit more than I expected. I can imagine you being one of the top next generational soldiers by the time you're of age."

"Oh, I know I will be," Raditz told her with a cheeky smile. Raditz wasn't ever going to sell himself short. One person already did and he was sure that many more did so as well. To let himelf settle for less would simply let his own pride shatter to pieces. When there's no pride, there's no meaning to life. So was now the mentality of a young Raditz.

"This planet ought to sell nicely," Dane commented. "Those gadgets these people used here will undoubtedly be of some use to Freeza. We'll be rewarded nicely, for sure."

"I feel bad for the poor fools who'll buy this planet," Korn stated.

"Why's that?" Raditz asked them. "If anything, it's good that they'll have a new home. If I were them, I'd be thankful."

Korn scoffed.  _Naive child doesn't even realize that this planet will be renamed and another set of warriors will eventually conquer it and have it sold off, only for the process to repeat._

Dane, though, understood exactly what Korn was getting at. "They'll get what they have coming for making a deal with the devil."

"Everyone has their day," Jaga told his comrades. "Our ancestors had to learn their lesson back when our old home planet was ruined because of infighting as the elders say. We've paid the price by working under someone who should be inferior to us." He then smiled. "But I don't have any worries. Freeza is of no exception and he'll have his day—by being taken out by one of us."

"As poetic as this world isn't, that's the perfect story for Freeza's end," Korn said.

"Why so against Lord Freeza?" Raditz asked his crew. "After all, he is the guy who provides everything we need and want as long as we do what we do best: fight. Besides, you can keep dreaming with the thought of taking down Freeza. He's the strongest in the Universe."

"Don't you believe in the legend, kid?" Korn asked.

"What legend?" Raditz asked.

"The Super Saiyan," Korn specified. As bad as she wanted to laugh, she didn't. How could Raditz, a Saiyan who's fought alongside older ones, have not heard of the legend yet? Surely he did, though maybe he needed a little reminder.

Raditz cocked his head back and started laughing like a mad man.  _Super Saiyan? Seriously!?_ "That's just a myth! It kind of reminds me of these fools who believe that a God will come in and save them from certain death. But what happens? I kill them anyway! I won't believe there to be a Super Saiyan unless it shows up. It's a myth for a reason."

"Well, look at you, mister-know-it-all," Dane teased. "You sure have everything set in stone, don't you?"

Raditz turned around to face his comrades. "Well, of course. We Saiyans are the most powerful  _RACE_ in the Universe but Lord Freeza is the most powerful  _BEING_. See, there's a difference. Besides, I see no point in betraying the one person who's only been good to us anyhow. He needs us just as much as we need him. And to be quite frank, I'm thankful that we're working for him. Could you imagine how boring life would be if we didn't have combat assignments thanks to him?" Raditz then shuddered sarcastically. "A nightmare, I tell ya."

"A child's naivete will never cease to piss me off," Korn huffed.

"This planet's finished," Dane told his men. "Let's head out."

"Where to next?" Jaga asked.

"Planet Chew," Dane answered. "We'll be there in a week's time."

With this planet out of the way, the four were now ready to head out to another. Raditz could really see that Dane wasn't joking about hopping from planet to planet. They didn't even have a half hour to sit down and chit chat a bit before bouncing out. Their entire purpose was to fight and make a profit of it. In the eyes of Dane, for them to slow down meant that they weren't going to get as much in return for their hard efforts. For that reason, this squad was constantly on the move...and barely home.

* * *

_Of course; a monkey's loyalty is only as large as their brain._

"Planet Chew, they say? I suppose I can pay a visit. Ohoho..."


	16. Deal with the Devil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Because of his subordinate's loose mouths, Raditz and his comrades are personally attacked.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 16**

**"Deal with the Devil"**

* * *

As Dane had established to his new comrade, travel was going to be a constant thing, which was a cost that came with them managing to rack up so much profit as a reward in the first place when it came to planetary assignments. No sooner subsequent to finishing off one single mission, they'd be headed right to the following one. Many combatants, when it took days to conquer planets, would spend a signifcant amount of hours on the assault and just about an equal amount for rest—rinse and repeat. As for Dane and his crew, they never slept from the moment that they touched down on a planet that they were meant to take care. They only slept in the midst of intergalactic travel; inside their attack pods.

Raditz initially thought it was going to be quite tedious just fighting and travelling for months on end, though the boy was adjusting to this way of life more and more as time passed by. He worried not about getting homesick and it even helped him take his mind off recent events involving his mother. This was what he needed. He even felt that way.

But one aggravating thing about travel was hearing Jaga rave on and on about their next mission. He never spoke on about how eager he was to fight and shed blood like any other blood-thirsty savage as he instead rambled off about the benefits that would come following the completion of their allocated tasks. And that usually involved money...which he could use to spend on food.

"Once we conquer Chew and sale off all the rest, we'll be able to buy enough rations to last us for at least another year, as well as fuel that'll be good for another few." The excitement in his voice was extremely noteworthy.

"You think?" Korn asked him. She understood that Jaga really meant that they were going to have a great bundle of food with the money that they'd receive, but he had the biggest appetite of them all. It was bad enough that any normal adult Saiyan could eat 50 course meals on a half-full stomach, though when a burly, edacious person such as Jaga grew hungry, there was no stopping him.

"Pfft! Don't you guys ever keep track of the missions we finish? We've completed five assignments in the span of three months! This will be our sixth. Just you wait. We'll have a nice pay." The man proceeded to rub his hands together with a toothy grin.

"Maybe so, but most of that's just going to food and fuel anyway, so why bother getting excited?"

"There's this one little dish I've been waiting to grab it," Jaga responded to Dane. "And it's a bit pricy."

"Yeah, sure." Dane placed his attention back over to Raditz. "Be ready, kid. We're starting to enter the atmosphere."

Like a meteor making way toward a planet, once an attack ball entered a planet's atmosphere, heat was at an all-time high. Fire covered the entire front of the ship, being visible through the impervious glass of which it coated. Though despite the raging fire that enveloped the pod, Raditz could see something out of the very corner of his eye. Though he only had enough time to catch a quick glance, he noticed that it had to be an object. "Did any of you see that thing we just passed by?"

"Looked like a rock to me," Korn said.

"Yeah, it's probably a meteor," Dane agreed. "Nothing to worry about. You see them every now and then if you travel enough."

"Oh." Raditz cut off the reception of his scoute. They were going to land fairly soon so no need to keep it on for communication at this point. He squinted his eyes and winced at the tight feeling that began to develop in his stomach. He didn't know why, but an anxious feeling started to pulsate throughout his body.

He had this  _funny feeling_ that he just couldn't shake.

**BAM**

All four of their attack pods landed in perfect synchronization, with the impact forcing the size of a crater equal to that of a meteor. As soon as the hatch to their pods opened, each and every single one of them had been hit with the thick air and humidity of Planet Chew. Other than that, Planet Chew appeared to be a decent looking planet: dark orange skies and clouds with a bright, yellow sun that graciously welcomed them with an eye-sore for brightness.

Raditz was the first to step out and ascend into the sky so that he could touch onto the planet's burgundy colored grass. "Well, this is it." From looking around, all there appeared to be were big, giant rocky mountains and a solid mineral-filled surface to walk on. No big buildings, no flying cars, no streets. Without a doubt this was a rather uncivilized planet, far below many in the world in terms of technology and livelihood.

"Whatever merchandise that happen to be valuable here, better be good," Raditz commented.

Jaga was the first to take notice of the young boy's slight apprehension when it came to seeing any good on this planet. "All different kinds of worlds come with different surprises. Some have the best treasures, virtually priceless even! You don't know how long some findings have lasted us."

"Sure…" Raditz trailed off.  _Didn't know soldiers actually went on to dig up stuff for themselves before leaving. Maybe I should do that more often._

**PIPIP**

Korn's scouter continued to beep as her foot started to leave the ground. As she elevated higher off the land of Planet Chew, she looked around for any potential findings. "Nothing," she told her comrades. "Not a single damn life-form nearby."

"You're joking!" Jaga shot off even higher than Korn and started to look out for potential victims. Upon receiving the same amount of luck as her, he looked back down to Dane with an insane look of confusion. "Anything?" Jaga had the face of a kid who was uncertain if their last piece of candy had been taken away from them or not. If Dane gave him a no, then the hope he had of being able to find any targets would just plummet quickly.

Dane just shook his head.

Upon hearing this, Raditz had an instant flashback, one which took him to his first moments on Planet San'en. The boy, being quick on his feet, shot off into the sky in a similar fashion that Jaga did, albeit with a far bigger sense of urgency. "Maybe they live underground!"

"Good thinking, kid." Dane did the same as Raditz and rose from off the surface of the planet as well."

"I think I see something!" Jaga shouted, being the highest up. The Saiyan reached for his pants to pull out a pair of binoculars from his internal pocket. Upon using the device, the Saiyan's eye laid upon an entire stack of bodies, all piled up. Some had limbs missing and some were still dripping with fresh blood. "What in the hell?"

"What do you see up there!?" Dane asked him.

"There's a stack of bodies just lying in the middle of nowhere! Someone beat us to the punch!"

"Shit," Dane cursed. "I hate when this happens." While very rare, there had been a few mix-ups in the past; missions would be assigned to two different squads around the same time and either one would finish before the other or both separate parties would land shortly before the other. In  _some_  cases, the parties partnered up and conquered together but that would mean for a more divided pay between them all, so in  _most_ cases, either the opportunity to conquer the planet would be fought for, or one party would convince the other to leave. It mattered not if they did so through words or bribery—there were a grave number of opportunists within Freeza's army.

**PIIP PIIP**

"Sorry to kill your buzz, boys, but ya should have been a little bit faster."

Before them appeared two violet skinned aliens that wore armor synonymous to their own. One of them had the face that appeared to resemble a fish with two antennas on his face and the other's head looked like the size of an enormous pear.

"Freeza's men," Korn scoffed. "Seriously?"

"We wouldn't have taken this assignment if any of you would have been smart enough to keep your trap shut!"

"See," Appule began to explain, "your words kind of  _hurt_ Lord Freeza's feelings. He's not very pleased with how you think that any of you have a chance in dethroning him. And quite frankly, we're not very pleased either."

"That's just talk!" Jaga defended. "You don't seriously thin-"

"We don't care if you were serious about it or not. The fact of the matter is that you said it and now that the seed is planted in Lord Freeza's head, you've given him the incentive to nip the problem in the bud. Problem equals you. Nipping equals him handling the problem. Bud means disposition. Can't have any potential rebels growing, now can we?"

Raditz's eyes left the sight of Appule and Kiwi as he spotted another set of individuals slowly descending from the sky up above. He could also see a giant circular ship in the proximity as well, which provided a great deal of shade from the near overbearing sun. The knot he had in his tummy just mere moments ago had gotten much tighter all of a sudden. Befuddled and rather disquieted, sweat started to trickle down the young boy's face from the widow peak of his forehead down to his chubby chin.

Never before had Raditz ever seen Freeza's face in his life but he couldn't help but shake the inherent feeling that his eyes were looking right at the most powerful mortal soul at this very moment. Despite the fact that he couldn't put any name to that bone chilling face, Raditz just knew that it had to be Freeza.

"You Saiyans never cease to come with surprises. Just a few years ago, your King has snipers pointed at me and now I hear you speak ill of me... wishing  _DEATH_ upon me." He then smiled. "If Death is coming to anybody, it's going to be most of you." Seeing the shocked expression on their faces brought out a smile from Freeza that could just light up the darkest of rooms. "Those with egos bigger than their own inherent worth in a universe of which I rule...does not deserve to live."

"Do we have the pleasure?" Appule asked. "Lord Freeza?"

"Sure," Freeza allowed. "But let me have one first."

Not even a second later than having said that, Jaga could be heard croaking, his fists wrapped tight around his throat. The chunky male's hands went from the dried blood of his victims to his very own. With his life force fleeting by the very second, Jaga's mind started to pace—all so much to the point where everything up top was quickly went blank.

Raditz and the others were all at a loss for words. From where they could see, Freeza had his hands resting on the railing of his hoverchair as if he hadn't made a move, though the band of warriors were very aware of the fact that he was the one to dispose of Jaga, who was helplessly falling to the ground beneath him.

"Now you can have your fun before the other boys jump in."

_FUCKKKKKKK!_

Raditz couldn't stop screaming that single word in his head. Of all the possible situations to be in, it just had to be this one—Freeza being the one to order their deaths and watch it. He was really going to die because of a group of some ungrateful idiots! If Dane really was his father's brother, then Raditz just couldn't help but question how in the hell could someone that happened to be blood related to him could be so eternally stupid. Because of that cretin, his life was now going to be cut short.

_I-I'm really going to die._

Appule and Kiwi rushed in with so much speed that Raditz's hair nearly came off his head once they passed him by. While they had selected to beat on Dane and Korn, the young combatant just stood there—as motionless as stone.

Freeza's red glaring eyes came upon the boy and he watched as his entire body shook with pure fear. Raditz's eyes were practically bulging. He showed no intentions of consciously staring at anyone—hell he appeared as if he thought of himself as a single person in a tight, dark room. He took deep, quick breaths, though that didn't stop the cold sweats and chilling sensation that tingled his spine every two seconds.

As he realized the boy conquered by fear, Freeza laughed. "What's wrong, young one? Can't dare to fight back?'

Raditz, though shaken, could still talk. "W-What's the point…? If I'm just going to die anyway?"

"Ohohohohoho, excellent point! I couldn't agree more."

Yep. His fate was sealed.

The sounds of Dane and Korn yelling Raditz's name out in a mix of urgency, frustration, and helplessness had been tuned down. Before, it all built up like the sound of an incoming freight train but all had quieted down upon climax. Being in his own little world, Raditz couldn't hear anything, not even his own drumming heart that was on the verge of piercing his own chest.

After seeing Appule and Kiwi having their way a bit, Freeza decided to add some more entertainment. He looked to the man directly next to him, who was a bulky, red-skinned individual with horns. "Shisami." All Freeza needed to do was say his name and the man was already one step ahead.

Shisami raised his hand up, signalling to the other men who waited to jump into the action. "HAVE YOUR FUN, BOYS!"

Before he knew it, Raditz was being swarmed by a group of soldiers. He didn't have a second to put his guard up as he was punched directly in the face. Not even ten yards soaring through the sky, he is then grabbed behind from under his arms, now open to another assailant. The kid felt as if his lung had been forced up his throat after receiving a harsh kick to the gut.

He was put out of the hold, grabbed by both arms from behind and kneed in the back. Raditz couldn't do anything but groan out in pain as he was being kneed in the spine and consistently punched in the face.

"Looks like to me you don't know how to have fun with trash!" Shisami yelled as he jumped in. The two soldiers beating on Raditz turned their attention over to Shisami, which gave Raditz the opportunity to strike back.

But he didn't take it.

"Let me show you how it's done!"

As soon as Raditz was let go, the kid went plummeting into the ground by a kick to the hip. Once he touched the ground, he had been punted back up and kneed in the face. Raditz went flying through an entire crowd before Shisami flew behind him and booted the child in the neck. The child was then grabbed by the leg and forced to go down as Shisami rocketed towards the ground as fast as he possibly could.

Raditz was inside a giant hole with more than half of his trembling body filled with dirt that was now being tainted by his own blood. Shisami appeared before him with his arms crossed, looking on into Raditz's shaky eyes.

"And you're supposed to be a warrior? You can't even fight back when looking death in the face!" He kicked the kid across the face. Raditz rolled over onto his stomach, holding his nose that spurted out blood. Shisami, though effortlessly whipping this little twerp's ass, wasn't through with him yet. He saw that there was still some

**PIPPIP**

Shisami turned his head over his shoulder as he aimed his hand at the group of men that approached him. Without them saying a sinlge word, he was well aware of the intentions that they held. They, too, wanted to have their fun with the Saiyan brat. Afterall, it wasn't everyday that one got to brag on about kicking a Saiyan's behind - child or not - many still saw such a feat as something to be proud of. "This one is mine. You all go on about the other two." Shisami wasn't having it.

"C'mon, Shinami! Let us have our fun!"

"As your current commanding officer, that is an order!"

This put the men right back into shape as they all just turned their heads and flew on to beat on the already ravaged Korn and Dane.

Shisami looked over to Raditz, who made an attempt at getting off his knees. "By the looks of it, kid, you're not even made of Saiyan material." He rammed the tip of his boot into Raditz's diaphragm, eliciting a painful grunt. Shisami ignored the boy's wheezing as he kicked him over on his back before stomping directly on the rib cage area of his armor. "From these stories I hear about you all being such a ferocious race, you really don't seem to be all that much, truthfully. Maybe you could do some true damage in numbers but all anybody has to ever do is pick you all off one by one. You'd turn into a handful of a lot in absolutely no time." Shisami chuckled a bit. "You Saiyans…" he started to lift his feet up. "...are nothing!"

"GRAGH!"

Shisami applied more pressure as he rubbed his boot against the boy's ribs. The sounds of bones slowly cracking put a smile on his face, so he just continued to stomp on them repeatedly.

He didn't stop even after pieces Raditz's of armor had broken off. He ignored the purple swollen area and just continued to stomp, and stomp, and stomp. Raditz had tears rolling down his pudgy cheeks. That was all he felt he could do in this moment—cry.

"S-Stop…" the boy mumbled. By now, the feeling of pain had disappeared and he was all numb. He just wished that this man would stop. "Please…"

"What's that?" Shisami removed his foot from the kid's ribs. "Are you begging!" He then kicked Raditz across the face. "A Saiyan begging me to stop?! HAHAHAHA, this will be a story for the ages."

Raditz grabbed Shisami by his legs, digging his nails into the man's skin. "S-Stop…!"

Seeing the look of fire in his eyes, Shisami stepped back a little, with his arms crossed. Seeing that he could find more forms of entertainment from this kid, he decided to let him get up. "Well, there it is! Come on."

While seeing Dane and Korn getting jumped on by dozens of soldiers far stronger than them was fun at first, it quickly became a bore. Freeza took his attention over to Shisami, who was watching the boy slowly get up. His interest now piqued, Freeza got a little closer in on his hoverchair for a better view. "Now, Shisami..." Freeza mumbled to himself, "just what type of show are you putting on?"

Raditz was hunched over, but nonetheless on his two feet. His face was throbbing and his stomach felt empty and numb, as if it hold no particular kind of weight. His narrowed bloody eyes didn't break contact with Shisami and he just remained, staring into his soul.

"Are you going to attack or what?" Shisami asked. "I'm waiting!"

"RAH!" Raditz came forth with as much power as he could, blasting Shisami at point blank range. Despite being at an extremely weakened point, Raditz continued to fire off back and forth. There were a myriad of circular balls filled with explosive energy that had been sent Shisami's way. One after another, they all detonated subsequent to making contact. As the smoke enlarged in size, Raditz continued to fire more. Without his scouter, the boy wouldn't be able to tell if he truly did manage to get rid of Shisami, but if he were to get rid of him, he was going to be damn sure that absolutely no traces of left.

Freeza, looking on from above, had his eyes widen in interest. Raditz relentlessly fired off chi attack after chi attack. "The boy's grown some heart in just the final last moments of his life. Hm." If it was one thing he didn't expect, it was for Raditz to genuinely begin fighting back. As soon as he laid eyes on the brat for the first time, he was so wrapped up in fear that he couldn't do as much as move a muscle. But here he was now, already beaten and running low on power, but fighting back. Futile, sure, albeit admirable nonetheless.

"RARARARARARA!" Once he felt himself on the very last sum of energy he had remaining, Raditz cupped his hands mere centimeters away from one another, raised his arms up, charged his attack until he couldn't exert any more energy, and fired it directly for his target. A big explosion followed within the area, expanding the size of the crater that Raditz had been forced into.

He remained hunched over breathing frantically. Raditz had put everything he could into those attacks and just hoped that it had done something for him, so he just waited, hoping that that red-skinned bastard had been done for.

"Congratulations. You've managed to singe one of my leg hairs." The horned alien started to generate a ball of ki in the palm of his hand, mocking the boy with a hearty chuckle. "Now's my turn." Shisami wiggled his hand around a little bit, unable to keep himself from laughing. "Try to keep your eye on the birdie."

Raditz just put his arms up to block his face but it was no help. The kid's back went crashing inside the walls of the crater he was being tortured in not a mere second than after Shisami's attack had made contact. Now covered in dirt and rock from top to bottom, he remained still. No longer did he have any speck of hope of any kind.

It was all over.

But even when all odds were against him. Despite being in a situation where one's mind would freeze, Raditz still couldn't take his mind off one person: Prince Vegeta. The boy wasn't able to keep himself from thinking how Vegeta would react to him being in such an unfortunate dilemma. Sure, Vegeta wasn't there, but the long-haired boy already knew.

 _Vegeta would be laughing at me right now in such condition, insulting me at the fact that I'm not even bothering to fend for myself anymore._  The very thought just made Raditz's blood boil. I _can't just sit and accept death. That's exactly what he'd expect me to do! I need to at least prove myself wrong before I die! **I can't go out a coward!**_

Raditz pushed himself from the hole in the wall, bare-chested. The boy merely had one damaged plate over his right shoulder and a little piece of his abdomen armor intact—a very miniscule piece that just stuck to his tummy. He had blood all the way down to his belly button but he didn't care anymore. His fear of death was no more at this point. Raditz had already went through hell in the form of a barbarous beating, so how could true hell in the afterlife be any worse? He was ready to die! And with such expectation, Raditz needed to make sure he didn't take his last breath going out like some little low-class punk.

"Still a Saiyan, so still relentless. You may not be determined in giving beatings as your people are said to, but you sure as hell do love takin' them, huh?"

Raditz spat out blood at Shisami's boot and wiped his mouth swiftly. "Go to hell."

"Well, guess what, brat? I'm not going to give you the satisfaction!" Shisami had his hand aimed right at Raditz's head. "And I'll be seeing you down there...FAR later on down the road."

"Now, now," Freeza interrupted. "No need to get so hasty in ending it quickly. You could have toyed with him a bit more, you know?"

"Really?" Shisami asked. He took one glance at Raditz before facing toward his superior. "Look at the brat! He's just a walking dead punching bag. Might as well put him out of his misery."

"But there's still an entire lot you can do: pull each and every single strand out of his hair and stuff his mouth with it. Make him suffocate on his own hair as you continue to beat him untill his very last breath. Rip the kid's tail off and choke him with it. Put holes in his body and cauterize the wound to only further torture him. There's a lot that a body can take—especially with a Saiyan's body." He leaned in on Shisami. "Trust me…I speak from experience."

With an entire book of ideas going through his head thanks to a few suggestions from Freeza, Shisami was eager to go ahead and play around some more. "Good call, Lord Freeza! You just made me think of a thing or two."

Freeza placed his hand on Shisami's chest, prohibiting him from taking a single step further to the boy. "But unfortunately that ship has sailed. You and the others report back to your stations. I'll be there shortly."

Though confused as to why Freeza would stop the fun now, he didn't dare object to his order. "Yes, M'Lord." Freeza noted the tone of displeasure in his voice but took pride in the fact that Shisami didn't even ask him as much as why. He did what he was supposed to: put his head down and take orders like the brute that he was.

Freeza watched as Shisami left and waited until he was out of ear shot before he brought his attention back to Raditz, who could still barely stand. He noticed that he was weak in the legs but forced himself to stay on foot. Raditz was sapping away at any preserved strength he had left simply by doing that.

"Lay down, child." Freeza flicked his finger, generating enough force to have a slight breeze knock Raditz over on his back. Once he was down, Freeza hovered directly over him. "Now, I could tell by the sound of your voice that you were one of the dumb bunch to actually take up for me, correct?"

"H-Huh?"

"Oh, please don't tell me you've forgotten! Well luckily I remember, albeit not verbatim. Ahem. I recall you saying that you see no point in betraying the one person who's truly been good to you. You even said you were thankful of working for me."

Raditz's exhausted brain brought him back to the final moments before they left from their last mission. Dane and the others were speaking badly of Freeza, about how one day he'd eventually have his day—by the hands of a Saiyan even. Raditz was the only one to object and argue that they ought to be thankful for Freeza, saying that if it weren't for him, then the Saiyan race wouldn't be where they were right now. As far as Raditz was concerned, they were pretty much as high as an entire race could get on the universal totem pole. "Y-Yes, now I remember..." Hell, that was the reason why Freeza came here to put them in their place anyway!

"Do you really?" Freeza poked his head out a bit, getting into Raditz's facial space. "Or were you saying that just so I didn't suspect you, too? Were you aware that I listen in on to conversations?"

"No, I-I didn't know! I swear to you!"

"Ohohoho," Freeza chuckled. "I know, child. I was merely pulling your leg. I could tell by the tone of your voice that you really believed what you said!" Freeza then hopped out of his hoverchair.

Raditz was taken aback by how small this guy was. But that just made Freeza all the more terrifying. For someone like him to have so much power and to be able to potentially cause do much damage. Absolutely horrible. Any fool can take one look at Freeza and think he was mere trash, but that'd only be so far from the truth.

"But hearing you, a Saiyan, say that made me realize something: not all of you simians happen to be ungrateful after all. You see how business is: you help me, I help you. You do good, I treat you good. It's a true misfortune that the King doesn't see it that way, but if he ever acts out, then he'll surely learn his lesson." Freeza let out a slow sigh that he intentionally made to sound depressing. "But you come along - you - a loyal soldier. Just as I was losing hope in the Saiyan race, you prove to me that there are actually some intelligent Saiyans down there somewhere. You actually have a brain. You see the things the way they should be seen." Freeza then extended his hand out to the child. "Come."

"C-Come?"

"Yes," Freeza said. "Come with me. I see the potential in you. You can be directly under me, within the Freeza Force and not down there with those idiotic beasts. You do good for me and you'll receive the best treatment I have to offer. Deal?"

A deal? If that meant him living to see another day then Raditz was all for it. If all he had to do to get out of this predicament was accept Freeza's offer and work for him as he's been doing, then it'd be perfect! He had no problem if it would be of him staying from home or not, he just wanted to live.

The kid didn't hesitate and pressed his hands against Freeza's before gripping.

Freeza strengthened his grip prior to pulling Raditz close to his face. "But...here's the catch: you don't go back home—ever. You are exiled from Planet Vegeta and under my order, you stay beside me. To even step foot back home is turning your back on me, which is the ultimate action of treason in your case." He then smiled innocently. "But you'd never betray me, right?"

"No…" Raditz mumbled. "Never."

"Good. That's what I love to hear." Freeza lifted Raditz back up onto his feet. He picked the boy up by his hand and set him into his own hoverchair. "A medical chamber will be ready for you once we head back to the ship." Using telekinesis, Freeza flicked Raditz and the hoverchair over to the ship at super speeds.

_The fate of the Saiyan race relies on this boy..._


	17. Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chupi sets up plans for he and his little brother to get from under the boots of their unwanted mentors; The child of Selypa and Toma is finally born; Kakarot is informed of the overdue bad news; Turles finds a very unlikely world that could help Kakarot develop as a warrior.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 17**

**"Plans"**

* * *

Though it was hard to tell exactly what time it was on Planet Zoon unless one could read the motion of the Planets that resided above them in the air, Chupi knew that it was just a few hours before they were to be in for a new training session. Most hated it, as did Chupi, though he was the most precocious when it came to the art of combat. Because of his ability catch on to things quickly, he was able to tolerate their sessions a lot more than the average person.

For the past few days now, he had been plotting; as soon as he thought of a plan to come from under the Saiyans so that they can leave off and hide in peace, he mentioned it to his little brother, Ipu. Said Zoonian watched as his big brother progressed on with this plan. Despite the idea being somewhat brilliant, the boy was very timorous when it came to the subject of escape.

"And that's that," Chupi explained. "It took me a few days but this is how we're going to do it."

Before Chupi had spoken of the entire plan to his peers, he had drawn exactly what they were going to do from scratch in an enlarged burrow where he decided to relocate the treasure. The drawing, which was made by stick, showed a giant building with a planet directly over it. This was a set time of which the plan would start. Just directly next to the planet right above the drawn home, there were a number of stick figures above it with little balls falling below them. And on the side of this particular drawing was labeled  _phase 2._ It showed a group of stick figures fighting a few people while there are two stick figures from afar, carrying a box and headed to what appeared to be ships.

Ipu, though while young, did come to comprehend this plan perfectly thanks to his older brother constantly drilling it inside his head. "But it feels wrong, Chupi." To the little boy, it just didn't feel right with how he and his big brother were going to make their departure from their only home for good.

"We don't have a choice, little brother. I'd rather die than be a slave. But why die when we can save our own hides and live off some place with no worry, just freedom?"

"We'd be leaving everyone else to die," Ipu told him, tears swelling in his eyes. Though many people he knew had been killed, the boy grew to have a bond with the people that lived. Their recent disaster drew them all closer and he just couldn't bare the thought of leaving everyone else for dead.

It was a hard decision to make but he was only worried about their security at the end of the day. Ipu wasn't very fond with leaving his fellow people behind either but he just couldn't see it any other way. "You're damned if you do and damned if you don't, Ipu." He patted his little brother on the back. "But I promise you that we'll be somewhere safe, away from being slaves. We can make new friends, do new things, and live happily! We won't be living in fear of getting beatings if we breathe or blink wrong! They're nasty people and I know mom and dad would be pissed if I just let you grow up like this."

Chupi made good points and Ipu knew this. But still…

"What about Mister Bardock?"

Chupi noticed that Bardock had been rather nice to him recently. He even took the kid away from Zorn's group of trainees so that he could teach him. Yes, Bardock was strict, but he never directed any form of malice toward the boy. He was patient with Ipu and even saw faster progress training under the scarred warrior rather than Zorn. Despite the fact that even he seemed like a good guy, Chupi just couldn't take any chances. "Sure, but he's just as dirty as they are. So what if he's nice to us? Has he been nice to the other people that he's killed? Did he stop his friends from beating and killing others like he does here? No." He could see Ipu get a little disheartened. "But chances are, Bardock will survive anyway and he'll live. Hey! You might even get to see him again after we take off! You never know. Life can be funny sometimes."

"I hope so. He doesn't deserve what the others do."

Chupi smiled. "Once you get a little more training, just enough for us to help in our escape, then I'll tell the others about the plan."

"But they won't just let us run away while they're fighting," Ipu reminded Chupi.

"I already know that, little brother. That's why as soon as it gets too chaotic, we're going to jet out. That's why you need to stay close to me at all times."

And that was it. Ipu had to do what his big brother said. That's how it's always been. And that way it shall remain.

* * *

Just as usual. Another day of waking up just to teach people how to be slaves. By this point, Bardock laughed at that fact, but he knew that it wasn't funny in the slightest. Upon putting on a fresh pair of pants and some new armor, the Saiyan warrior reached for his scouter. By the time that the very tip of his finger came into contact with the device, he paused.

_I hate those things._

He reeled his hand back in, having mentally decided that he wasn't going to use it. After he headed out the door, he could see Selypa directly in the room across from him, stuffing clothes in one bag as she stuffed food in another. Only one question came to Bardock's mind.

_Is she leaving?_

"What's going on here?" Bardock asked. Seeing that the door was wide open, he didn't see the problem of letting himself right in his comrade's personal quarters.

Selypa looked over to her comrade before she tied her bags up. "I'm headed back home."

"Oh, what's going on? Is Toma missing you already?"

Selypa smacked her lips. "Shut-up. And no, I just need to make it back in time to conceive my kid."

"You're with child?" A little chuckle came from him after he saw Selypa's frown. The woman could tell he was  _acting_ surprised, for her bearing a kid was a very noticeable thing at this point. While Saiyan women had the option to wait until full development was through, most preferred to remove the child prematurely and place them in an incubator that provided all the necessary nutrients for them to grow finely. Bardock didn't expect her to have a kid so soon but maybe her and Toma really did have some bond. "Well, I don't need to guess who the father is."

"Sure don't."

"Your kid is going to be strong," Bardock reassured her.

"Tell me something I don't know," Selypa said with a smug grin. "My genes and Toma's? That's going to make for a Super Saiyan."

Bardock playfully scoffed at the light joke and made room for his long-time comrade as she started to walk out of the door. "See you around, Selypa."

"See you around, Bardock."

And those were the last words shared. Out of all his warriors that he had worked with in the past, Bardock was never close with Selypa in comparison to the others. While Leke was rather very much a nuisance and somewhat naive in his own silly way, Bardock looked at him as if he was an annoying little brother. His relationship with Taro was much like that with Toma before the former had decided to retire. Gine is self-explanatory. As for Totapo and Pumbukin...they were always there for him as well when he needed them—which was seldom. Regardless of the fact that he was closer to the others, Bardock respected Selypa's presence on and off the battlefield. She showed that she could battle it out even in the worst of situations and she was always non-chalant out the combat zone.

He just wished the best for her. That's all he could do at this point.

* * *

"You're projected to be nobleman by the time you're of age so act like it, brats!"

Toma was in a training room, accompanied by a pair of children, both between the ages of four and six. One child belonged to Nappa, and the other to Zorn, one of the stronger and more respected Saiyans of Planet Vegeta. Because of the fact that the two kids were seen as one of the more promising young developing warriors, they got to receive special training. They were taught the basics such as flying and directing chi attacks. As for sparring, the boys merely fought one another.

Toma, now that he was a mid-class warrior, had one of the tasks with converting the more gifted future young Saiyans into proper combatants. He had no complaints and did as he was ordered. Toma even took pride in being able to aid in preparing the future so that the Saiyans could remain forever strong.

But as expected, just because one had high potential didn't mean that they didn't need to be taught a thing or two. Toma didn't sugar coat anything at all and made sure that the two boys heard him whenever he spoke.

"Choy, everytime you grab Zima's tail, I don't care if he begs to you or not, keep squeezing!"

Toma caught the annoyed look on Zima's face but he didn't dare give his superior any lip. He got special permission from Zorn to do whatever necessary to make sure his son was molded into a fine warrior and Toma made sure he was going to hold his word onto that bargain. He had great inherent potential and by any means, Toma was going to surely bring that out of him.

Choy, on the other hand, treated this entire thing as if it was a little game. It was far too obvious that this kid was Nappa's son. He was stocky like his father - well moreso fat - and even had the same set of hair. While he could get a bit aggravating at times, Toma merely tolerated the kid because he did everything he was ordered to a tee, so he couldn't complain.

As for Zima, he only had his father's look while his hair was rather long, spiky, and all over the place.

"Now, get on with it."

The very first thing Toma knew he needed to teach these two young warriors was to get rid of their one and only biggest weakness: the tail. He recalled the hell it took in order to overcome this and he understood why Zima didn't like this all too much but all parties were within the same understanding that this was only for the best.

"You heard the man," Choy told Zima. "Get on your knees, hehehe."

"Fuck you," Zima retorted.

Toma got a good laugh out of this and just continued to watch as the boys trained.  _They'll be ready for the frontlines in no time._

"Sir Zorn's son surely have a pair of potty mouths on them, does he not?"

Toma turned around to see a blue haired lady through the glass of the training room bent over, speaking into an intercom. He felt that he saw her around before, but then again, it became apparent to him that she was one of the handful of clones that King Vegeta had working for them. "Which one are you?"

"Nion," she answered Toma. "I mean not to intrude and all but whenever you're not busy, I'm pretty sure you'd like to come and take a look at your son, Taro?"

_Son? I have a son?_

A shit-eating grin was soon to be seen plastered over Toma's very smug face. The thought of having his own child was never all that fascinating to Toma before, not until now at least. Given the fact that he was of Saiyan nobility, then his son was as well. With a child growing up on the higher rankings of the Saiyan army, Toma's lineage would be remembered as a group of true warriors. He was already proud before he even saw the child. And to add icing on the cake, it was named after his own brother! The thought of his brother living on through his own lineage brought a proud smirk to Toma's face.  _Nice, Selypa._

"Whenever I finish, I'll be there. Where's the mother?"

"Healing," Nion told him. "Don't worry, I'll wait here for you."

As soon as he got finished with a session for those two knuckleheads, Toma was waltzing through the halls on his way to see his son. Nion was a few steps ahead of the male Saiyan so that she could show him the way. A few minutes of silent walking was all it took before they took a turn. Nion opened the door in front of Toma and moved out of the way so that he could enter.

Through all his years living, Toma had never stepped foot into this place before. There were dozens upon dozens of tanks surrounding him in the room, though a grand majority were empty.

"Follow me and I'll lead you over to your child."

"Of course." The closer he was to laying eyes on his offspring for the first time, the more eager he became. He and Nion walked down a few pathways, bypassing some doctors, and taking a few turns. The slower that Nion started to walk, the more that Toma realized that they were getting closer to their destination.

"And...here...we...are."

Toma and Nion came to a stop by a young Saiyan child placed in a green colored incubator. Right beside it was a doctor who could be seen taking down notes on some paper attached to a clipboard. As expected, not even five minutes subsequent to a child being taken out the womb, they were already being scrutinized. They cared not for how the child came out physically or psychologically since the only thing that they were working to check for were the power-levels of the children.

Nion broke the ice with the doctor and began to conversate with him. As soon as he saw his kid, he looked on with a look of pride. The child, though sleeping, definitely had his face, though took after his mother with the hair. "Taro is his name, huh?"

"That's right," Spench informed Toma. "He was conceived just hours ago. The mother of the child was off world on some assignment. She said that she was getting tired of carrying the kid and just wanted to get it over with."

"When will this kid be taken out and ready for training?" Toma asked.

"Training?" Nion and Spench simultaneously asked with a confused look.

"Yes, training. Like any other promising young Saiyan warrior, he will be receiving special training." Toma already pictured it in his head; Zima, Choy, and Taro all working alongside together with two elder Saiyans out on missions. Hell, it was even a possibility that they'd all be able to traverse the universe alongside Prince Vegeta someday. Despite having an idealist mindset, said mindset was what helped Toma be promoted in the first place. He had nothing but high hopes for this kid.

Spench looked at Nion with a quirked brow. Did this dude just not hear what they said about this child? From what they could imagine, all of what they had spoken about regarding this child had gone through one ear then directly out the other. Just by seeing the beam of light on Toma's face, Nion and Spench could tell that he had let high expectations get the best of him. There were some moments like this in the past where a Saiyan would think of their child to be something special, only for reality to hit them like a freight train from behind.

Nion and Spench didn't really care for the man's potential reaction and simply went on with doing their job.

Nion clicked a few buttons on her touch screen pad prior to handing it over to Toma so that he could look over the information accumulated regarding his newborn child. Nion didn't decide to utter a single word so that Toma could see for himself but Spench felt that it would at least be of some consolation for him to explain to Toma the truth of matters.

"Going by what the data says, the likeliness of Taro being an infiltration baby far exceeds that of him potentially being trained by one of the mid-class soldiers as a possible noble combatant of the future. Comparing his current power-level to those who have been taken out the womb at approximately the same time, studies show that Taro is 70% more likely to be a commoner than an elite."

Toma ignored every other piece of info such as the child's time of birth and its gender, name, etc. The very first thing he looked for was a power-level. Upon getting the number, his mouth virtually dropped. "Three?" He looked back up to the two. "That's it? A power-level of 3?"

"Yes," Spench answered him. "After a few years pass by, he's projected to have a power-level of 6. Though it's progress, it's still a mere qualification of being an infiltration child."

"No, no," Toma shoved the pad into Nion's chest. "Check again."

"We've already checked multiple times," Nion responded. "His power hasn't fluctuated at all since he's been taken out—time is needed for that to begin to happen. It's been three from the start and no signs of change seem to be coming any soon. It'll remain stagnant for a while and once he's around three, he'll have grown just a miniscule amount."

Toma smacked his lips. "I'll do it myself, then." The Saiyan removed the scouter from his left eye and placed it against the glass of which his son was in.

**PIPIP**

And there was no definite changes. He knew all too well that his scouter wasn't malfunctioning given that it was a newer model. This elicited a long pause from the dark-skinned Saiyan, which was then followed by a deep sigh. He backed up, put his scouter on, and turned around. "Thanks for wasting my time."

It was pitiful. At the time of conception, he and Selypa were already upper-ranking soldiers, so for their child to have such low potential just didn't make any sense. To be a mid-class soldier and to have such a weakling son would start to raise questions from his peers. Toma knew this all too well so if anything, it was just best to not even acknowledge that kid. Who's the father? he doesn't know.

_I have real work to do._

Walking his way down the corridors in hopes of making it back to his two trainees, Toma could hear incoming footsteps. To be headed where he was coming from at this time indicated that it could have been only one person.

_Selypa._

Once her face became visible to him, Selypa sped up her pace to meet with the Saiyan. Once they got close, she gave him a soft jab on the arm. "Well, look who beat me to the punch!"

"You on your way to check on the kid?" Toma asked her. He hoped deep down inside that she wasn't, for she too, would be wasting her time as well. Toma felt sure that she had other things to do.

"Well, of course," Selypa responded. "Why wouldn't I?"

"If you valued your time, then you may as well just head back over to Planet Zoon and finish your assignment."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"The kid is a weakling. A mere power-level of three. I got my hopes up and they came crashing down hard. He's just another run of the mill Saiyan soldier, probable to die by the hands of a Galactic Patrolman." He then placed an index finger on the side of her head. "Think about it: we're noble soldiers and that's low-level value. We'd be better off at making another child instead of focusing on the potential of that one."

Hearing this come from Toma's mouth lit a fuse up inside Selypa. She carried that child for weeks at a time and endured the pain in carrying while she worked. Not only that, but she imagined how she could play a role in molding her child into a true warrior. After all this, Toma just felt like they shouldn't even acknowledge the baby's existence? What stupidity!

"So what!?" Selypa smacked his hand away. "You, me, Bardock, Totapo, and Pumbukin were all born low-levels, too! Hell, Bardock told us that he was a lower-level Saiyan, said to not be fit for battle and look at him! He's one of the stronger soldiers in the universe because he didn't let his birth title hold him back! We didn't let our title at birth hold us back, either! Who's to say that Taro isn't capable of doing the same?"

Selypa made a good point and Toma knew this. For that very reason, he didn't even bother trying to debate with the woman. But still, to have his hopes up so high, for them to only come crashing down was just far too much of a major disappointment. Having a child of his own born weak was embarrassing enough for him. "Tch! If you want to go see the kid, who's there to stop you?"

"Nobody, that's who." Selypa shoved Toma to the side and stormed over to the incubation center. She didn't bother looking back at the father of their child.  _Toma is wrong and he knows it! My only best bet is to prove him wrong. I don't care how long it takes, Taro will become a true Saiyan warrior._

But on the other hand, Toma thought differently;  _what a disgrace! The boy doesn't even deserve to hold the name of my brother._

* * *

"Home sweet home."

It had been what felt like too long ever since Turles had been back on Planet Vegeta. He paused and took everything in for a rather long while upon touching back down on land thanks to being hit with a little nostalgia.

Most of the ships that were seen in the skies of Planet Vegeta were headed out as some could be seen coming in. This was a constant thing virtually every single day. There was always a number of people coming in and out of Planet Vegeta, either returning after having completed an assignment or two, or being the ones headed to finish off a job.

Before Turles could truly get settled back, Kakarot had took off in the air.

"Hey, where are you going!?"

Kakarot stopped dead in his tracks before he got out of hearing distance. He looked back over his shoulder and responded: "I'm going to see mommy!"

Hearing those words come out of Kakarot's mouth put a subtle look of disgust onto Turles' face. The kid was an absolute savage out on the battlefield so it was hard for him to picture the boy being so eager to see someone, even if the person happened to be his mother. Turles didn't move a single muscle and was now stuck in his thoughts; he had a decision to make.

_Kakarot's mother should be dead by now so she ought to not have set foot back on this planet for months, nor shall she ever again. If Kakarot runs into anybody who might think something is up, my plans could be foiled. But...at the same time, if I demand him to stay by me, things could seem a bit fishy for him as he gets older when his intelligence begins to expand. He may question why I'm keeping him away from his family. And upon finding out his mother's fate, then he'll be looking right back at to me. If anything, it's best that I allow him to go-give the boy some illusion of happiness. It'd be worse if I ordered him to stay by my side and prevent him from seeing his feeble mother. Also, chances are very unlikely that any other party happen to be aware of who I am and what part I play in all this._

"Go right on. I'll contact you as soon as we're ready to leave."

With that being said, Kakarot had took off in a hurry. His tail wagged from side to side with enough force to send a bear through rocks. Regardless of the fact that Kakarot hadn't been home in months, the kid had a perfect memory of the area in which his mother resided in.

Upon stepping down within the familiar area, Kakarot rushed inside the house, only to find that absolutely nobody was there. Of course, he expected his brother and father to be elsewhere, but his mom was always here and working. His tail stopped wagging and he started to walk around, from room to room, unable to find anybody.

More confused than sad at the moment, Kakarot started to check the most minute areas such as the little pantries in the kitchen.

"Kakarot, you're back!"

The boy looked up to find Gumeel, who had Elery in her arms. The boy quickly ran up to her, needing answers. "Where's mommy?"

The smile of relief upon seeing that Kakarot was back and okay had quickly vanished. Due to being somewhat close to Gine, Raditz and Bardock had filled her in on what happened. It wasn't her place to start voicing out speculations, but she was going to tell Kakarot the truth regarding his mother, especially given that nobody else who knew was able to do so.

Gumeel, biting her bottom lip, set her child down on the counter and began to twiddle with her fingers as if she were a nervous child. She hated to be the one to render bad news, but since nobody else could at the current moment, the responsibility rested on her shoulders.

"Well...you might wanna take a seat."

* * *

The very first things on Turles' mind was getting some new attire for he and Kakarot, as well as rations that would last them a couple more months. The dark skinned Saiyan carried two heavy bags over his left shoulder as he munched on a piece of fruit, walking over to a little bar where alcohol was served. The bar place had a covered area and some tables where people could sit down and just drink with no worry. The thought of wine had Turles excited because it was his most desired drink, which was something he hadn't had in some time now.

The Saiyan walked over to a stool by the bartender instead of heading over to one of the tables and snapped his fingers. Before him appeared a young Saiyan female, who was beginning to ask what it was he wanted.

"Wine," Turles said, speaking before her. "Any kind of wine will do."

"Sure thing."

Instead of people taking shots here in little cups, the Saiyans had entire 48 ounce bottles, filled to the very top. A few of those would barely get anybody tipsy so many could enjoy a lot at their own leisure. Turles, being the oenophile that he was, sniffed the drink a bit and stirred it with the tip of his index finger before taking in a little taste so that he could swish it around in his mouth. "Mhm..."

His hairs stood up on nearly every end as he devoured more and more of the wine. After a couple sips he just downed it all. "More," he demanded as he placed the bottle back on the bar table.

The female chuckled a bit. "Of course."

"Ah, so he gets more, but I can't!?" a man sitting at a table shouted from across the room.

"That's because you've had enough," the bartender shouted back at him. "Why are you still even here anyway?"

The man scoffed and turned back around, shrugging his shoulders. "Got nothing better to do but bother you, I s'pose."

With the short amount of time Turles had to observe this man's face, he noticed that the person didn't seem to be in quite a good mood. Being back home was nice but at the same time, it could get boring fairly quickly, unless any fights broke out. Subsequent to getting his refill, Turles got up and walked over to the man. To catch a person in a down mood meant that they'd spill out more than necessary. If were to speak on about information that would naturally be kept to themselves, that meant an opportunity for something. And Turles, like most of his people, was an opportunist—a smart one at that.

"Here, you can have some of mine."

Having such an unexpected offer lit the man's face up. "Well, aren't you a pal?" He jacked the bottle from Turles' hands, spilling some wine on the table as he started to gulp the entire thing down.

_I said some, not the whole damn bottle._

The bartender from afar chuckled to herself quietly. She knew that was going to happen from the very moment that Turles offered his drink.

Though annoyed that the man was far too drunk to pay attention to every word that came from his mouth, Turles just smiled, acting as if he wasn't bothered, and took a seat across from him. "So, what is it that's bothering you?"

"Huh! When you have a child that's too weak to conquer a frontier world is embarrassing! It's bad enough that my child is looked at as so weak that they had to go through an extra effort just to find a world that he could conquer with ease! Pathetic!"

Turles just shrugged. "Well, that mostly depends. Some planets can be full of surprises. In some other cases, the Galactic Patrol have a tendency to get involved. No Saiyan child can defend themselves from any officer of that group."

"Hmph!" The man cracked his knuckles. "The goddamn planet the boy was sent to has an average of five. FIVE! Surely you understand just how weak a world like that is. On top of that, he was sent there on the day of a full moon. You'd expect him to be done within a few years, but NO! He was taken down! Just got news today."

_Interesting._

"I thought about going there myself after hearing the news to clean up what my weakling son couldn't but it's pointless. That dump of a world doesn't offer very much of value, unless they have treasures we don't know about. Still, a waste of time."

_That's what you may think._

"And what Planet is this?" Turles asked. "If you don't mind my inquiring."

"Planet Earth," the Saiyan male replied. Though drunk and slow, he did catch onto why Turles asked him. "You don't plan on going there to conquer it yourself, do you!? I told ya—that planet is a literal dump!"

"Sure it is. However... I have a young growing combatant who may have something to learn from a trip there."

"Ahuh. Suit yourself." He truly didn't see the point in attending in the first place. A world like Earth was something he believed to be a waste of time for even capable Saiyan children. If he saw Turles' face again, he'd laugh right in it and just drill on about how he wasted his time.

As for Turles, he just couldn't believe how simple-minded this man was.

_This buffoon is really an idiot. Doesn't he realize that even scouts can be wrong? A world that is judged to average a power-level of five is able to withstand the attack of a Saiyan child_ — _hell possibly an Oozaru at that. This undoubtedly means that there are outliers to this silly little world. While I may not get anything out of that planet, Kakarot surely can. And if he can get anything out of it, then it benefits the both of us in the long run._

Turles stood up from his seat and went back over to grab his bags of rations and fresh new armor. "Coming back home every now and then does have its pros, I suppose."

"Sure does," the bartender agreed.

"Hehe."

Kakarot sat in a chair, looking down at his dangling feet. The kid squinted his eyes in an effort to not release any tears, though to no avail. It was hard for Gumeel to just leave him alone but she did as he asked and worked anyway. As tempting as it was to try and comfort the kid, Kakarot would probably rage if bothered at this time. He was quickly switching from a moment of sadness to one of rage.

Though strong and smart, Kakarot was still only four years old. The only person he was close to asides Turles was his mother. As boring and uninteresting the jobs they did were, he did appreciate spending time with her.

_I miss mommy._

**PIP**

" _Kakarot, I just got a new assignment for us. Meet me back at the departure site."_

Kakarot didn't even respond and just cut off his scouter. So Turles had a new planet to conquer already? Initially, the kid did want to spend time on the planet in hopes of hanging out with his mother, but since that was out the window, there was now only one other thing to do. Kakarot sniffed his nose in an effort to suck his tears up prior to wiping his red eyes. His sadness flicked to that of anger, which he now felt the need to release.

Wherever this new world happened to be, Kakarot was going to bring absolute hell to it.

 


	18. Terror on Earth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot and Turles touchdown on Earth.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 18**

**"Terror on Earth"**

* * *

Ending the night on a high note would only leave one to assume that they'd start the next morning just as well. A good night's sleep followed by a nice, warm morning shower couldn't be any more gracious. At least, that was how Panchy saw it. And to top that off, the therapeutic custom of preparing a breakfast with an enticing bouquet every morning contributed to an even more joyful mood. Such was expressed aloud as she hummed a soothing tune that bounced that rippled throghout the three story house, though that wasn't the only thing that travelled throughout. The smell of hot soup and fine rice emanated from the stove and made way from the kitchen up the stairs. Not even a third of a minute after the scent had been grasped, tiny little feet came rushing down the boarded stairs.

A young girl made her presence known without shame. She wore a violet T-shirt with Kanji that spelled out  _Bulma_  with black jeans and some pink, silky sneakers. The nine-year old ran over to the dining room and sat down at the table. Despite the haste that she showed subsequent to getting a sample of that mouth-watering aroma, there had already been a hot plate and bowl ready for her to grab at.

Before she got to eating her food, her round blue eyes glanced around the area. A frown came over her face upon finding out that what she had been looking for was nowhere in sight. She looked up to her mother and spoke with an annoyed, high-pitched tone. "Mommy, where are my strawberries?" The way in which she spoke was more of a demand than that of a question.

Panchy turned around from the stove and dangled a little lunch box by her face. "Your lunch is in here, sweetie!" She walked over to Bulma and placed it on the table next to her food. "I figured it'd be best to not eat too much this morning! You have your big test today and I don't want you feeling sluggish!"

_Good point._

After looking down at her breakfast yet again, Bulma noticed that everything was fixed in a rather small portion. The soup was in a little bowl and her food had been set on a plate nearly equvialent to the size of her bowl. Regardless of the fact that this would leave more to be desired, the girl was aware that she wouldn't have to worry about testing early in the morning on an empty stomach. And by the time lunch break came, she'd be back at one hundred percent to ace every single test left. So she had no complaints. "Thanks!"

Panchy was dressed in a yellow Square Neck Smocked Bodice Star with zig zags, high heels, and dazzling accessories around her wrist and neck. Bulma knew all too well that her mother didn't dress up this fancy just to stay at home all day, so she was up to something. "Where are you going today?"

"After I drop you off from school, I'm going shopping!" Panchy explained happily. By the way she carried herself, it seemed like Panchy had set up reservations for an amorous date with her hubby. Given that this family was the most affluent family in the city—probably even the planet—Panchy never ran out of the money for wich she used to dress elegantly. She could be sweeping the house in a silk maxi with golden earrings for all she cared and nobody at home would even bat a weird eye.

If there was one thing that she loved, it was definitely shopping. To put it simply, Panchy acts like the average bimbo would when able to grab at stacks of money in mere seconds. Asides from that, Bulma was a bit bummed out to find out that she wouldn't get to test out her new flying scooter on her way to school—the one that she specially made over the weekend. "But I can bring myself to school!"

"You'll get to try that out tomorrow!" Though not the sharpest tool in the shed, Panchy was quick to catch Bulma's hard frown. In hopes of cheering her up, she reached out for her daughter's little chubby cheeks and pinched them. "C'mon, now! We can't be late! Who knows how many boys at school are waiting for you!"

Bulma stuck out her tongue and expressed her disgust. "Yuck!" This elicited a chuckle from her mother. While knowing Bulma was still into her little sweets and gadgets, there would definitely come a time in which she started to have crushes. Unable to prevent the inevitable, Panchy had already mentally and emotionally prepared herself for days like this; so much to the point where she was beginning to encourage Bulma to experiment a little—a kiss here and there—nothing too much.

The ride from home was a very nice one—for Panchy at least. Bulma did her best to cover her face as they passed by unfamiliar faces that'd recognize them from a mere glance. Such was the luxury of being a rich family. Panchy didn't care much for reputation and stayed true to her own character: horribly singing out loud to the booming music in their car and bobbing her head around, missing the beat as she did.

As aforementioned, it was easy to recognize Dr. Brief's family. Because of this, Bulma was very well known in school, mostly by the staff and administration, as well as children who were somewhat knowledgeable about her father's inventions and history. Most the adults, regardless of their particular place at school, had a tendency of giving more attention to the daughter of Dr. Briefs. She knew why but she didn't complain about it.

Ahead of the road there was a well sized building that had a few add-ons attached to it as well as a playground. There had been school buses and cars parked in all designated areas of the school.

"We're here!"

Today was going to be a piece of cake. Due to her abnormal intelligence and capability to comprehend and utilize any information given, it was very seldom that Bulma got anything less than an A. If she did have any minor difficulties, all she had to do was go to the smartest man she knew: her father. And with his help, she excelled even further. Bulma, though said to be ahead of even some high-school students, wanted to go straight and pass through every grade just to atleast retain some type of commonness in her life.

"You feel ready for all your tests, dear?"

"More than ready!" Bulma pounded her fists together. Failure was no option. She studied enough to prepare for every subject that was going to be given and even played out the examples on her homework in realize to fully immerse herself. There was just no way she got anything less than a hundred percent.. Besides, this would be the last tests she needed to take in order to advance to the next grade.

When it came Bulma's turn to exit the vehicle, she grabbed the handle on the door and stepped out. "Good luck, sweetie!" Panchy shouted to her. "Make sure to eat everything so you can stay with a healthy brain!"

"Yes, I know, mom!" Bulma waved at her mom as she drove off so that she could have a good ole time shopping. "Bye!"

Once the car was out of sight, Bulma turned around and looked over at her elementary school. A smug grin came over her face as an indication of the utter confidence she had today. "Time to pass with flying colors!"

* * *

Just when she figured that the day couldn't get any better than she had initially thought, sporadic, cool breezes would pass on through the air as the sun beamed down on the ever-so busy samartians of West City. Panchy, as she was on her way driving over to now go grocery shopping, had a bag of clothes and boxes of jewelry in the backseat of her red classic chrysler. The woman got many eyes coming her way; not only for her slim volouptous figure, luxurious car, and graceful clothing—but her radiating optimism that followed every single step she took. Now the shopping for clothes had finished, it was time to get some food.

Panchy pulled up into a parking lot. As expected, there were dozens of other cars in the area with almost all of the parking spaces taken. As she passed up one lane and took a right to find a parking space, Panchy looked in the back of her mirror, where there was a car slowly driving behind her. Once she squinted her eyes to get a better look, it happened to be a grey-haired wrinkled lady with sunglasses.

Panchy looked over to her right where she saw one parking space right at the very beginning and one over in the middle. Any kind person would have been generous enough to give the old lady the parking spot closer to the entrance to the grocery store. Panchy herself considered doing so out of the kindess of her heart. She shrugged her shoulders and took the spot anyway.

As she got out the car, Panchy could be seen and heard being honked at by this irate elder lady. With a big wide smile, the younger and better looking female waved back happily. "Good morning!"

"You stupid, ungrateful, delinquent bitch!" the old lady hollered. "Learn some manners!"

Due to not paying attention to the vicinity ahead of her as she drove, the old lady ran right into a car that was backing up from a parking space. The airbag that came out had almost snapped her neck on impact. All those who witnessed it gasped full of worry—well almost.

Panchy remained indifferent and went on about her day.

Once she entered the grocery store, the very first section she made sure to attend to was the fruit section. "My little Bulma will be mad if I don't have her strawberries after shopping." For any normal family, one, two, maybe even three sets of strawberries would suffice. Such was very different for Bulma, though. She needed a minimum of five to at least be content throughout the entire week. She looked through all the ones that looked ripe and fresh before putting down eight. Knowing that Bulma would be happy, Panchy was happy.

_TIme to go get some tea next._

* * *

The evening before a test day, there would always be a lot to look forward to. But now that day had came and was beginning to go as time went by, the only matter that students and teachers worried themselves over were grades—getting them and doing them. Bulma was going to have passed her tests and move on to the next grade. She was just sure of it and there was no convincing her of the contrary. For any of those who had tried to say  _what if_ or  _but_ and  _maybe_ , the young girl shut them down on the spot. Asides from grades, Bulma also had thoughts of her sister wandering through that big brain. TIghts was going to be coming over later this evening, and her father was going to take a break from work to hang with the family today. Very seldom did he take a break off work, but he usually did so when the entire family got together. Hell, he even made sure to never let loose of his cat, Tama, who was considered to be a member of the family as well.

The sound of a pen dropping in the room had caused Bulma's head to jerk up. The cause of a utencil falling to the laminated floor had brought Bulma back to reality and make her realize that she had been stuck in her head for the past while. She was breezing so much through the timed tests that she took what she thought a few seconds to think of herself. Turns out a few seconds quickly turned into five minutes. She subtly shook her head and refocused.

She had a few tests to ace.

* * *

All good things had to come to an end—even good days. Unfortunately for Panchy, her good and fast-paced day was beginning to turn into somewhat of a disapppinted. Just moments ago, the road was spacious and caused no reason for concern. However, the more and more she drove the way back home, the more cars she could see coming to a stop ahead, seeming as if everything was a complete traffic jam. She expected to get back at Capsule Corporation in the span of ten minutes at the very most so that she could pick up all her bought items and begin to clean the house up a bit.

As soon as she pulled up behind a vehicle, the blonde could see dozens upon dozens of others just directly behind her. Many people up ahead were outside of their cars, looking over onto something with genuine curiosity. Whenever there were dozens of people outside their cars with mouths open wide, then something serious had to be going on. With intrigue getting the best of her, Panchy became one of many to exit her motor vehicle to catch on to what was transpiring.

It was really unusual. People really got out of their cars, looking on ahead as if some tragedy had happened. Though surely it couldn't be that horrendous if dozens of people were willing to stick around.

By the looks of it, this little jam had been going on for some time no, but in all reality, the very first car to stop up ahead had did so only half a minute prior to Panchy's arrival.

Before very long, helicopters came flying in and sirens started to wail all throughout. Some people got back in their cars but this only resulted in manT

Panchy, while not the sharpest knife in the kitchen drawer, knew that her best option was on foot. She turned around and headed over to the sidewalk, where she began breezing past people, making it seem like she was a track star. Her heart pummelled against her chest and her eyes were wider than they ever been in her entire life. The fear of the unknown was precisely what had gotten to her. This wasn't a bad idea but the problem, however, was that many tried to do so simultaneously. This only caused the front and back areas to get crowded, thus trapping peo eple in and rendering them no other choice but to escape on foot.

Screams, cries, bullets, and explosions; all of these were taking place at once.

After while, Panchy started to check her pockets while running amongst the crowd. She was virtually on her last wind and didn't see how she would be able to outrun this unexpected disaster. Upon feeling a little object in her pack pocket, the woman's eyes widened. Just when she thought she lost it, it was right in her hands.

_Bulma's scooter!_

Bulma had been expecting to receive this scooter so that she could drive her own way to school for the first time. Panchy was going to give it to her but then decided she would spend today shopping, also capitalizing at the opportunity of dropping her daughter off at school—killing two birds with one stone.

She grabbed the capsule from her pocket and clicked the top button of the object prior to stopping right in her tracks and throwing the thing afar. She took a quick glance around, seeing smoke build up alongside the raging fires that had been started. As she huffed and puffed, her mind started to go all over the place. She knew she was here, but this was an outer body experience for her.

West City was really being attacked!

The sight of limbs and blood as well as cars being set ablaze would traumatize any normal person and even bring them into a state of shock. Fortunately for Panchy, she wasn't the type to be a deer stuck in headlights.

**POOF!**

As she heard the capsule convert into that of a scooter, Panchy turned her head back to the vehicle designed by her daughter and started to hop on it. Thinking that she now had the chance to really escape, Panchy was dragged right back into reality, no matter how dire that current reality was.

The impact of the scooter blowing up had sent Panchy off her feet. Once her back slammed against a fire hydrant from behind, she fell down hard on her arms and knees. If she didn't have adrenaline rushing through her body as if she had just been injected, she would be rolling around, writhing in pain. But with the realization of there being no chance of escape, she began to cry.

"Please…" she mouthed. "Please...don't hurt me…"

Nobody was standing near her, or at least she thought. She just hoped that a God—any God—would get there, listen, and take action.

She could feel a small shadow gradually show up on the sidewalk's concrete. This figure wasn't like the rest: running off in a hysterical panic, or crying out loudly in hopes of being saved. Panchy continued to plead. Given that this person wasn't running off, it had to be one of the attackers. And even though looking at the face of this murderous person would only result in striking more unfathomable fear into her heart, she couldn't resist lifting her shaky head.

Once she caught the eyes of a young boy who was so short that he made eye-level with Panchy while on her knees, said woman opened her mouth out wide and froze. She had forgotten that children were in the vicinity as well. Oh, she could only imagine how many had died already. Just thinking if this kid happened to be Bulma or Tights, she would do all she possibly could to lead them to safety. Chances are, this boy's parents were dead, too, so the very least she could do was place him in a secure spot. "Oh, my god! We have to get out of here!" She got on her feet and grabbed the child's hands in an attempt to flee with him. While she tried to run and pull him with her, this only succeeded in Panchy falling on her back embarrassingly.

She looked up at the boy and saw a smug grin suddenly plastered over his face. This had her heart sink to the very bottom of her stomach. Though this child appeared very harmless, it became apparent to her that he more than likely played a vital part in what was causing this unexpected atrocity. She could just tell by the look of pleasure he displayed in the action of taking lives and bestowing pain and eternal trauma onto others.

"Please!" she shouted, with so much force in her voice that spit came flying out. "I have a husband and two daughters! I have a family I love!" Kakarot had visited many other worlds and many did what this woman did now: beg for their lives. His grin vanished but he didn't show any other expression—he appeared emotionless. Subsequent to receiving bad news just recently, the young Saiyan child wasn't in a really good mood. The only thing that made him feel better was fighting and that was exactly what he came to do. Listening to people plea for their lives came with the territory of what he did but he sure as hell didn't intend on listening for much longer. He held the right palm of his hand right before Panchy's face, which was illumintated by a bright, white ball of light. She had no idea what it was but she sure as hell knew what would happen if it made contact with her. Though chances were small, she decided to try again. "I'M A MOTHER!" she shrieked. "DON'T DO THIS!"

The little bit of energy that he had been slowly generating then vanshed.

_Mother._

He started to think about his own mom. While only at the young age of four, it became apparent that Kakarot wasn't just some simple-minded boy; he was capable of advanced thinking to some extent for his age. He often wondered if it was his own fault that his mother suffered the fate that she did. By him deciding to run away, she more than likely came after him, only getting herself killed. Kakarot couldn't come to a definite conclusion because Turles told him that this was the best option at the end of the day. Still, his emotions conflicted from the wise words of his mentor.

Turles stood on top a burning building, arms crossed, and black irises staring with so much intensity that Kakarot would be burned to ashes if Turles' eyes were capable of burning people on sight. The darker-skinned Saiyan ignored the bullets and bombs being sent his way as he wasn't able to virtually feel them at all, despite being so open and accepting of being attacked. His glare was unwavering.

_No signs of weakness, boy._

Kakarot could feel Turles' hard gaze from afar. He knew that he had to act. Afterall, he was a true Saiyan warrior. Panchy, while whimpering, closed her eyes. Even despite the fact that the white ball had vanished, Kakarot didn't turn his back and walk away. With her head lowered, Panchy just accepted her fate and wished for her family's safety. Much to her surprise, the boy spoke. "You know…" Panchy's eyes then opened and focused back into Kakarot's callous glare. "I had a mother, too..."

She stopped crying and slowly opened her eyes. By those words alone, she imagined that the kid would be able to sympathize with her! Maybe he needed a little emotional tugging of the heart to convince him of turning the other cheek—to stop hurting people. He was still a child and as any child, the boy would have feelings for his own mother! Perhaps thinking about how he'd felt if he lost his was all she needed. She lifted her head back up, eyes wide. She wanted to speak but the scrambled words in her brain just wouldn't allow her to talk.

"Once..." Kakarot finished.

Panchy didn't so much as gasp before she had a hot beam of energy fired straight through her cranium.

"Hmph." For a split second, Turles actually thought that Kakarot was going to bless the inferior creature with an act of mercy. Gladly, he was wrong. Now that he knew Kakarot was fully committed, Turles turned around and looked up to the helicopters that were firing at him non-stop. The bullets being sent his way were nothing more than little flies in his face. They didn't hurt but they were an aggravation-an aggravation which needed to be disposed of. The dark-skinned Saiyan fired at each and every single one of them, blowing the objects up to pieces. He cocked his head back and laughed dearly as the screams of those burning alive echoed.

Kakarot turned around from the dead blonde that bled out from the center of her head, coming face to face with five men, all of whom had some form of weaponry in their each hand, one being a flashbang. Once the tool had been unclipped and thrown, Kakarot respectively fired all of them whilst they were in mid-air. The bang had the officer's ears ringing and before they knew it, all of them had been shot down dead by the young warrior.

* * *

Bulma and the rest of her students were all taking safety measures upon hearing of a sudden attack. Soldiers from the military of Earth had been assigned to guard the school with their soon as news spread, police forces from all over the area had got together to protect specifics places, one of them being schools. No later than when the attack started, armored vehicles and tactical soldiers came around to guard the vicinity. The attack was taking place just miles of there so they had to be ready just in case.

If only they knew of the power of those they were being attacked by.

Kids weren't told of the true events that happened to be transpiring, so they merely thought that a natural catastrophe was on its way, not that their city was being torn back to the bits of what it took to build it up. Yet even still, the sounds of shooting and bombings from afar clarified most that something much worse was going on. But the kids knew better than to not speak on it, for the adults would just scold them in turn and order them to do as directed.

Bulma, who was hiding behind a desk in a now dark classroom, heard some people whimpering and even noticed the fear in people's eyes. She knew for a fact that if the tragedy continued, she'd ultimately get caught up in it as well.

The other kids were lined up in the class as well as the teacher of their class remained under the very door of the classroom.

_Okay, stay calm._

Any panic meant all sense of rationale right down the toilet. In order to remain alive, the girl needed to keep a cool head and think on her toes. Her father told her about this one time when she had some little trouble with biology a few years back. Bulma poked her head above the turned desk to look at the walls of the room, seeing only a few windows spread across. If she were to exit one, then she'd be able to run through the back way of the school and make a quick short-cut over back home. That was her only goal: to make it back home. Once there, she was sure that she wouldn't have to worry about much anything else.

Then the gunshots started to fire off.

Everyone in the room jumped at the sound of destruction and terror just out the solid walls of the school that now felt like rubber that could be penetrated at any time. Bulma and others could see smoke coming up from one of the side windows in the classroom, as well as fire. Everyone's eyes grew wide and some of the kids started to sob in horror and despair. They knew not exactly what was going on and that was the most unnerving aspect about this whole thing. But everyone, including the kids, had enough common sense to realize one thing.

This wasn't any natural catastrophe. This was war.

The precocious daughter of Dr. Briefs knew better than to just sit still and wait for death to rear its unwanting hand in her face and take her away. All eyes were on her as she suddenly rose up to her feet. She could tell by the stares that they all wanted her to sit but she couldn't bring herself to do that. The young girl ran over to the teacher's desk and picked up a mineral that had been given as a gift.

"Bulma, what are you doing!?" the teacher blurted. "Sit down!"

But she didn't listen. "Follow me if you want to live!" The girl ran toward the back window and slung the rock at it before jumping through the hole she made. After rolling over on the grass, she looked behind her to see even more smoke coming up. The screams and shots were even louder than before. "I need to run!"

So she took off as fast as her little feet could possibly carry her. She looked over her shoulder to see some other students and their teacher coming out as well. However, not all did so. Out of fear of the outside, they remained inside the building. At this point, it was every man for himself.

Bulma ran through the back of the school, spotting an armored truck from afar. The people that happened to be next to these trucks all moved over to the other side of the school in hopes of fighting off their intruders. Helicopters were whirring its rotors all over the place. Just after the copters came fighter jets that had blown directly past them She did her best to ignore the scary atmosphere of this battlezone and made her only objective in getting inside the truck.

**"HIERAHHH!"**

A shriek so strong that rocks on the ground cracked had caught everyone's undivided attention. One of the students had been shot through the heart as they tried to flee—it being from a bullet that had been parried away. This caused everyone to freeze and panic, except for Bulma and the teacher, two of whom jumped inside one of the armored vehicles.

Bulma got into the driver's seat and grabbed the wheel. She didn't bother to buckle up and started the engine. The elder of the two looked at the little girl with his eyes wide and brows furrowed, showing a great expression of uncertainty.

"Do you even know how to drive!?"

"I drove an alien spaceship before. This is nothing!"

"But your feet can't reach the pedal!" she bellowed.

"Then push on it!" Bulma shot back.

Seeing no other option, the teacher got on her knees and pushed on the pedal. Bulma was already two steps ahead and had the wheel turned. The tires skidded away as they rushed on through the bumpy roads of West City. Out the mirror, Bulma watched as the kids behind all looked on in utter shock, as if they had been betrayed. Seeing their facial expressions caused her heart to drop, but the guilt wasn't enough to make her turn around and make an attempt to go rescue the rest. As for the teacher, she was most definitely worried about herself. The relief she had upon being able to get out from the area was far more dominant than any sense of guilt she had—if she had any to begin with.

The sounds of explosions and gunfire yet didn't come to a stop. Not able to look away from behind while driving ahead, Bulma saw the school crumble and collapse directly on itself. This caused her to gasp.

"What!? What happened!?" Going through the woman's head was the thought of the possibility that a tire had popped or something. Anything that would delay their escape meant an inescapable death.

"The school fell apart!"

Though scared, Bulma didn't let her fear deter her from her main goal. She made swift turns and didn't get into any wrecks along the way. At the insane reckless speed that Bulma had been driving, it was only a matter of seconds before they turned up right beside Capsule Corporation.

"BREAKS!"

The teacher did as told and pressed on the breaks of the vehicle. No sooner than it stopped, Bulma opened the door and hopped out the vehicle. There was no time to be wasted as every second mattered most.

"Where are you going!?"

The woman figured that Bulma would drive them off to a nearby city or some area where they'd have enough time to think and plan to bring themselves to safety. But stopping here meant that they were still in West City, the very same city that was being attacked! She couldn't die here, not now.

"I'm goin' get my daddy!" Bulma hollered back.

Dr. Briefs could be seen exiting the house with a briefcase that he started to full up as soon as he heard the news. The disaster zoon was closing in on him so he got as much supplies as he could manage. Seeing Bulma gave him a sigh of relief. Bulma jumped off her feet and gave her father a tight hug, as well as Tama.

"Daddy!"

"Oh, Bulma, dear…" Dr. Briefs held onto his daughter tightly. Despite the area in which Panchy was supposed to be in had been attacked, he was glad to know that one of his own was fine, at least. He put her back down on her feet and crouched down to be eye-level with his daughter. "We have to get out of here now."

The teacher, who knew better than to just stick around, got into the driver's seat and took off. The sounds of the armored truck skidding the road caught both of their attention and left Bulma becoming nerve racked. "Our escape vehicle!"

"Don't mind that!" Dr. Briefs told her. He pulled out a capsule, clicked it, and tossed it over into their yard. "Minimize the house before we go! We're bringing it with us over to Mr. Omori's island."

"But what about mommy?" Bulma asked.

This was exactly what Dr. Briefs had already thought mere moments ago. She was in the very area that had been attacked, so he knew that it was too good to be true to just go out looking for her. He just placed his hand over the girl's head. "We'll look for her after we get safe. Now c'mon."

Bulma was feeling much, much better, though the concern for her mother was beginning to grow more and more by the second. Omori's island wasn't all that secluded but it was the best option they currently had. The little girl knew that her father would be able to come through. Deciding that his plan was the best, she got right to it.

"On it!"

Bulma did as told and ran over near the front door of Capsule Corp, pressed a little button and backed away from the house. Once it poofed into a little capsule, she caught the object and made sure to pocket it. She looked back over to her father, who gave her a reassuring look with a nice, confident wink. This elicited somewhat of a smile from Bulma, despite their unfortunate circumstance.

* * *

To see your very own home being wrecked, destroyed, and treated like a deadly playground wasn't taken to kindly to the very person that looked over the planet. A wrinkled old man, who didn't look anything like the average Earthling, gripped tightly onto his old wooden cane. As he stood on a floating platform, he looked down past the clouds. Every death caused his body to wince. Every scream hurt his own very soul.

But it wasn't like he hadn't gone through this before.

Children cried out for their parents. And those childrens' parents begged God to save them. But none got what they wished for. They were just slaughtered like cattle—slaughtered by two evil entities that had big, fat smiles on their faces as they carried out genocide on the weak and near defenseless people of Earth.

"This...this is building up to be just as worse as the mayhem that Daimao spread onto our world."

The overseer's attendant, Mister Popo, couldn't agree anymore. The demonic entity known as Piccolo Daimao was down spreading carnage for days on end decades ago. It took a very great amount of time until he had been stopped and by the way things look, it could possibly take just as long until these two attackers had been done in for good. West City, as well as North City had already been attacked and done away with at this point. For the past few minutes, both had been headed over to the Southern quadrant of the planet.

Mister Popo could tell that Kami was very troubled by the incident that was transpiring here on their world. He could only think of one current solution.

"Why, I would suggest we use the same people that worked together to take down that beast that plagued our world just a while ago."

Mister Popo had immediately caught on to what Kami was referring to. Before these two people showed up, there was a smaller, yet similar presence here on Earth that would come out to attack the inhabitants of the planet on a monthly basis. Every 30 days, it'd come out at different locations. Once its pattern was figured out, Mister Popo and overseer had decided to pitch in and take care of the problem.

Perhaps these same people would come to do so again.

"Hm…"

* * *

Living away from the city would be seen as an insane bore for most people, though for those that did live far away, happened to be very lucky this day. An old man sat down on a pillow, drinking a bit of beer as he watched the news. He stared hard through his dark shades and had uncomfortable fillings go up and down his spine. This was very reminiscent of Piccolo Daimao's reign on Earth and he feared that much more pain and suffering would be brought onto Earth if they continued.

The old man rose up to his feet, approached the television, and turned it off. He set his beer on top of the television set and let out a sigh.

There were people waiting for him just outside his little home.

The elder hermit exited the living room of his house by going through the front door. Just outside on his small little island, his eyes came into contact with old friends, mentees, and rivals.

Orin: teacher of the Orin Temple, a school for aspiring Monks. He was an above average fighter and did well in distracting the rampaging beast in order to help take it out many months ago.

Gyumao and Son Gohan: two former students of the elder hermit known as Muten Roshi, Master of Martial Arts. While up in their years, they showed that they could still move around on the battlefield. They, too, put their lives on the line so that the giant ape could no longer rampage their world.

Tsuru-sennin and Tao Pai-Pai: brothers; masters of the crane school. Tsuru had the same master as his old rival Roshi, but the two took separate paths along the way. A great friendship had rivalry had just turned into that of a rivalry.

All of these people had been gathered by the one and only Mister Popo, as a direct request from God himself.

Roshi removed the shades from his eyes, looking over all the individuals that set foot before him.

There was some hatred amongst some of these people and the others were just neutral. Regardless of the possible differences they had, they were willing to set them aside if it meant saving the world of getting a nice kill. Time was of the essence. Every single second they waited, that meant another 100 lives lost.

"Well…" Roshi broke the ice, "what are we waiting for?"


	19. A Precarious Proposition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During their conquest on Earth, Kakarot and Turles come across a valuable property. Turles decides to make a proposition, but will this benefit him, truly?

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 19**

**"A Precarious Proposition"**

* * *

Tokunoshin Omori's island used to be set up off the side to East City, which luckily for the residents had yet to be untouched, however they decided to relocate at a different aread; dead smack in the middle of the ocean. After hearing of the incidents that had transpired in the other cities, everyone had evacuated the area, thanks to the military—or what was left of it. The island was guarded by patrolman in boats and watch towers that had been set up nearby.

Tamagoro Katayude, chief of East City's Sea Police, made sure to call up every agent and remaining police officer possible in an effort to guard the people on this island. It was a big favor to call in, but it was done quickly and had been an ultimate success nonetheless. He had a history with Mister Omori; they got off on the wrong foot upon their initial meeting with one another, but as fate would have it, they became rather good friends. Fishing was a favorited hobby of his, so living on Omori's island was the perfect setting for him.

Inside the guarded house, Bulma sat at a dinner table, poking cooked meat with chopsticks. When she did raise it off the plate, she would casually let it slap right back down as if the meat were goo instead of genuine food. Dr. Briefs didn't even bother decide trying to talk to her as he didn't want to pressure his daughter in any kind of way. Now that they were in a remote and secure area, they had a lot of time to think on what had just recently happened. With questions left officially unanswered regarding Panchy, he felt Bulma needed some space. He decided to speak with Omori and Katayude.

Unlike their father though, Bulma's sister decided to sit down right next to her. The blonde was also lucky to have made it out in time. As soon as she got word that West City was being attacked, she made contact with her father to ask if he was headed to Omori's island, which he most definitely did. Seeing her sad little sister, Tights sat with her arms folded on the table, eyes fixated on Bulma's flushed face. She wanted to ask about their mother, but deep down inside, Tights already knew the answer and she felt that Bulma knew so as well. She needed not even look at her sister since the gloomy vibe that emanated from her was far more than enough. Bulma was trying so hard not to break down and start crying, but she couldn't help it. As soon as Tights seen tears fall down Bulma's face, her arms came around the little girl with great passion. The two shared their grief together with silent sobs. This didn't go unnoticed. Before Briefs and his family could enlarge their house and settle alongside Omori's island, they had to wait for things to blow over first.

"They're taking this hard," Omori noted.

Briefs took off his foggy glasses and rubbed his grey, saggy eyes. It was a hell of a day. The man hadn't been getting far too much sleep as he placed himself on a tight schedule for a set project he had been working on for some time now. And with all of this taking place, it merely added to the high levels of stress that he had. Briefs placed his glasses on the counter and grabbed a pack of smokes before he headed outside the house. Omori followed.

As soon as he seen Briefs light a cigarette, he started to get the urge as well. The man, in fact, had decided to quit smoking as he got up in age but he saw no reason in keeping cigs away now if he was to die at any moment of any day with these beasts running amok. "Mind if I have one?"

"No." Dr. Briefs handed Omori a cig.

And then the two scientists got to smoking. They looked at the calm, glistening waters before them and listened to the nice breezy wind. Everything seemed so peaceful but even the world's atmosphere could be a mere mirage. The two puffed on their cigarettes for a while without sharing a word so that they could set their thinking caps straight. Omori was the one who initiated conversation.

"First the Red Ribbon Army and now the Earth's Army." He sighed. "I wonder what else is in store."

"The Human race," Dr. Briefs mused. As dark as it may have been, those words evoked a stifled titter from the balding scientist. "With how things are going, we'll all be gone within the blink of an eye."

"Hm." Omori took another smoke. "Last time there was a savior against that beast that showed up every month. We can only hope that we have a savior come for us around this time as well."

"Indeed."

* * *

There couldn't have been a slower day on Earth with all that had been taking place since the early morning. For what felt like an eternity to happen, evening finally came and the night was rearing its head onto the horizon. With dark times during a rather near pitch black setting, such only made the ambiance seem far more inauspicious.

There were helicopters closing in on a barren city, with a big light coming from the object as it whirred closer and closer.

"There's smoke clouding the area," the pilot told five men in the back.

The attack had taken place just hours ago and smoke continued on as if the tragedy had occurred just mere moments ago. How could two humanoid creatures do so much damage? It was unreal.

"Don't worry about it," one of the men answered. "All the buildings are crumbled in a heap of dust anyway so you won't have to worry about wrecking into anything while above fifty feet."

"Alright, then." The pilot hovered over the center of what remained of the city so that they could come on down with black rope. "I don't think there are any survivors left." He then scoffed. "So what's the point in being here anyway?"

"Well, this is the King's request. He wants as many possible survivors recruited and brought back to camp." As dangerous as this was, no man dared object to the King's demands, for he was a respected man and he only did so out of nobility and care for his fellow man. "Now let's get down there!"

Out from the helicopter came seven men, straight down a line, all with armored clothing and automatic weaponry in their arsenal. There was the chance that they could run into hostile individuals so they stuck with their tools in hopes of being on the safe side.

As soon as they touched land, they put on goggles that helped them see clearly through the night. Also detection of any live people would be far much easier for them to obtain. With their weapons in arm and fingers near the trigger, they all gave one another the signal to spread out in different directions with the goal of finding surviving civilians. Some of the men saw this as a lost cause. There was just no way that there could actually be any souls that happened to endure the punishment that those two monsters rendered. Buildings had came down at excessive speeds as they burned to pieces, in addition to explosions of cars, helicopters, and jets taking place all around. So much damage had been done to Earth's defense forces that they had been forced to retreat. Never in a million years did anybody think that two human beings could cause so much disaster. But then again that was probably it; they couldn't be human.

The leader of the squad of men walked over to a nearby broken down building, which used to be the Durian Airport. It was nothing but rubble and burnt, smoldering material. His eyes had been cursed with scorched bodies and despite the fact that the majority of his face had been covered—save for his eyes—the abhorrent stench of death still managed to skulk into his nose. The odor was so strong that his stomach began to twist and turn in disgust. Such a sight shouldn't have to be witnessed by any naked eye. Sure, he had been surrounded by dead bodies before as well as other atrocities in past assignments, but he never experienced anything as despicable as this.

Little did he or the others know that they were being watched.

The further they split up apart, the easier it became to take them down one by one.

The leader walked past a few more buildings and ruined cars, heart pounding hard against his chest. In the back of his mind, he just wished that he could get the hell out of here as soon as possible, though his loyalty to the King and his requests made him stay. He knew what these intruders were capable of. If they could take down entire aerial machines made for combat, then what's a person with a gun going to do?

He was so worried about the possibility of being one of the many next victims that he almost passed up the faint cries of a survivor.

"H-Help me…"

His ears perked up.

"H-Help…"

He ran over to where he heard the voice coming from, jumping over pieces of rock and some cars even. Once he made it over to the cracked sidewalk, the soldier peeked in through a broken window of a building that had yet to completely collapse, which was where he heard the voice come from. Even though he was reluctant, the leader decided to head right in anyway, with his firearm in hand.

It was a young man covered in soot and blood, practically buried by debris. Just by solely laying eyes on this person, it was a miracle as to how he could even remotely survive any of this. The man threw his gun over to the side and used his two hands to remove everything that had been keeping this person down the entire time.

Once he got him up from under the rubble, he carried the man over his shoulders like any loyal soldier in combat would to aid a wounded comrade. As he walked out of the place, he grabbed at his communication device. "20 meters up from landing destination, I've got one. Over."

He removed his hand from the button.

A few seconds passed and he didn't receive any response from his peers. This caused him to worry a bit but he didn't think of the worst. Perhaps they were busy helping someone else in a dire situation, just as he was mere moments ago. He kept walking on foot with the person mumbling words of gratitude.

And he walked.

And waited.

Walked.

Then waited.

As he got closer and closer to the destination, his concern started to now get worse. He talked into the walkie talkie once more. "I'm near the landing destination. Have you got any others? Over."

**THUD**

Six other bodies had been thrown right by his feet. Some of the men had missing arms and legs, while others were just limp with blood leaking out of their motionless bodies. Looking at them caused the leader to gasp in horror. With all of his best men pretty much gone by now, he just knew that he was next.

"T-They're still here…" the man whispered.

The soldier, who was on the verge of panicking, set the civilian down on his back and quickly observed over his fallen men. He noticed that all of them still had their guns wrapped around their body so he picked up the closest one and aimed it at the sky, as he walked back. " **WHERE ARE YOU!?** "

His booming voice echoed into the silent area of South City. His blood got hot and sweat started to produce all over his shaky body. He had been in combat scenarios before but this was just something entirely different—a novelty that he wished to never have to face in a billion years.

" _Here_ …"

The soft, low, menacing voice was so close that he could literally feel the breath penetrating his armored clothing and running down his neck. This caused him to gasp and freeze up. His finger was on the trigger yet no bullets were being fired. The very last thing he saw was the dark abyss up ahead before he received a shockingly hot sensation through the chest cavity. The only found survivor there shrieked in horror as the man's now dead body fell just right over him.

Turles looked down at the survivor with a big smile on his face, as if he were an avid child at an amusement park. It was just incredulous how someone could actually find such pleasure in spreading death and causing pain to those undeserving of such tragedy. Was this person even human? No, it couldn't be! No person was capable of carrying out such monstrosities without having at least a bit of contrition in their hearts. Hell, this creature didn't even have a heart as far as he was concerned.

"All you had to do was keep shut and wait until morning." Turles pointed his finger at the man's face. "But then again, who's say you'd last that long anyway?" He smiled.

As Turles was preparing to finish him off, his young peer had caught eye of something coming right for him. Kakarot knew that the scouter would catch wind just a split second after he noticed, though he decided to give Turles a heads up anyhow.

"Around you!"

Before Turles could even take heed, the Saiyan's scouter beeped loudly just before he got hit in five different areas at once by blasts. This didn't hurt him in the slightest, but it sure did leave an annoying little sting. Once the dust settled, Turles could no longer see the survivor.

It didn't take much thought to deduce what had just happened.

"Someone's playing heroics."

**PIPIPI**

The dark-skinned warrior turned around. He had no expression of surprise when he came to see five people down on their feet with their body language making it clear that they were itching for some form of confrontation.

Two of these people were bald, one with facial hair and the other not, with six incensed dots on his head. One of the others had on a crane hat and one with a long ponytail and devilish look in his eyes. Another just took the appearance of a simple old man while the last was the biggest of them all, yet not the strongest.

"You wait until now to decide to save the world?' Turles chortled. "It's a little too late for that." Of all the various planets he's been to, most would usually send their strongest after the very first attack. Yet now, after having taken care of a great portion of Earth's inhabitants, the best that the Earthlings had to offer were finally being sent this way. It just didn't make any sense to him.

But still, Turles hoped that they could prove for some fun.

"Oh, just these two?" Tao smacked his lips. "And here I was, expecting it to be another rampaging beast."

Roshi and Gohan were both a bit uneasy by Tao's lack of concern. They could feel the strength in this person and it wasn't to be taken lightly. Tao was a man who could never be matched by most so he didn't expect to be beaten by two random creatures. In the assassin's eyes, he could have done just exactly what the intruders did in less time.

"These two almost took out all of the Earth's military, little brother," Tsuru told Tao. "Don't underestimate them."

"Ah, I could have did that myself," Tao said, flipping his braid from his shoulder onto his back. He turned his head and looked over at the side, spotting Kakarot. "And one of them's a mere child at that. Who's be this foolish to bring their own son to die?"

Turles grinned.  _The talk from this guy is hysterical. Just how strong is he really?_ In hopes of finding out, Turles clicked his scouter to scan over all their power-levels.

"Let's see here…15, 60, 70, 80...and 85." He then frowned. "Is this the best that this world truly has to offer?"  _If all of them had another zero at the end, then I wouldn't be upset. That bumbling inebriated fool back home was right; his child shouldn't have failed his mission_ —especially if these people are the best that this dump has to offer.

"I beg your pardon!?" Tao growled. "You dare underestimate the strongest Martial Artist in the world?"

"Not even worth my time." Turles turned his back on the five men. While any Saiyan would be glad to have a challenging fight, Turles only saw the pleasure in dominating his opponents. Fighting these five people would be far too easy and much of a bore. One hit and they'd never be able to get back up. But with Kakarot fighting them, he could probably get more entertainment. "Kakarot, why don't you handle these pests?"

Feeling insulted that he'd actually have a child face them rather than he himself, Tao sneered. "You dare!?" He jumped right at Turles.

Before he could even touch the Saiyan, Kakarot was there to stop him in his tracks. One solid kick to the chin was all it took for Tao to be put directly on his back. Everyone else watching didn't see Kakarot move. One second Tao was hopping off his back-foot and the next second, he had been seen down.

"You fight me!"

Tao got back on his feet, wiping blood from his mouth. "From you, a child…" he growled. "Fine by me. I've no qualms with killing children if I get a good kill out of it."

Turles caught those words and had a quick thought flash through his brain.  _Then he'd make a fine warrior...if he were a Saiyan._

"We need to work together," Orin told Tao.

"To hell with that!" With rage blinding all sense of rationale, he attacked once more by aiming his index finger. "DODON-PA!"

Before Tao's blast could even leave his finger tips, Kakarot's small fist had been rammed against the man's abdomen. And for the second time, Roshi, Orin, Gyumao, and Tsuru got to witness this kid's mind-boggling speed.

Tao doubled over before falling right onto his knees with his salivated mouth left agape. He wheezed, gasped for breath and did his best to stay on his feet. With two samples of this brat's strength, he was absolutely befuddled.

Kakarot then proceeded to knee Tao in the chin, sending the man on his back for the second time. Before Kakarot could do anything else, Tsuru came directly at him, only to get smacked away by the little boy's tail.

"This kid…" Gyumao mumbled. "He's something else."

"For such power to be held by someone as demented as he…" Gohan trailed off.

"it's a waste," Roshi finished for his former mentee. In all his years of life, he had seen very few promising Martial Artists but none like this kid. He had all the power in the world, yet Roshi could already tell that he had no genuine technique. He relied solely on his raw strength. If he were to help the kid refine his own skill in the art of combat, then he could use it to do something great, not for evil. He never thought that he'd hate having to rid the world of a certain evil, especially if a child like this could use his own power for something far more noble.

"We have to help them!" Orin told the other three.

Roshi shook his head. "Those two almost cost us all our lives last time just because they think of themselves the best. This time it's different and I say it's best we let them do their thing before we do ours."

"So we let them die?"

"No," Gohan answered Orin. "We just hope that they come to their senses and partner up with us; fight smart. If they do that, then they won't die."

"Besides…" Roshi handed Orin a little bean. "We have these."

And it was at that moment that Orin kept his mouth closed and said nothing more. He now understood perfectly where Roshi was going with this.

The two brothers got back up, scowling. How could a kid come out of nowhere and just one up them like this? They had spent years into perfecting their own fighting technique—so much that they were listed as one of the best in the entire world! The days they punished their own bodies and fought through the pain just to be better seemed to be all for nothing. They'd understand if a grown man came out and did better but a child? They couldn't stand for this!

"I'm going to kill you!"

Both Tao and Tsuru-sennin shot forth at the same time. Tao was much closer so he set his eyes on him for the time being. Kakarot caught eye of Tao raising his knee and blocked the attack with his own elbow. He proceeded to duck under Tsuru's swat and wrapped his tail around the man's legs to send him on his back once more prior to getting up and rendering Tao a vicious uppercut to the chin.

Tao stumbled back and struggled to keep his footing though he made sure to not go down again. Before he could come back with anything, he had been blasted directly in the stomach by the young Saiyan warrior. He turned around, elbowed Tsuru in the face while he was in the midst of getting back up, then clocked him in the cheek with a ferocious punch.

Teeth had been removed from his mouth and blood had been spilled.

Turles just watched on in silence with his arms folded.  _These idiots would do best to try and fight together all at once. Kakarot's power-level is only 124 so they could give him a run for his money if they tried their hardest as a team._ He smiled.  _But what do I look like telling them that? Heh._

"That is it!" Tao then grabbed at his stomach after having yelled. If the boy had put even just an ounce more of power into his blast, then Tao would have a gaping hole in his stomach at this exact moment. He angrily launched himself at Kakarot as fast as he could, sending a serial of quick paced attacks, mostly aimed for the eyes and throat. Kakarot used his hands to effortlessly swat away his attacks before sliding over to the side. His scouter detected Tsuru to be attacking from behind so he moved at the last second, giving Tao no chance to escape his brother's deadly Dodon Pa.

The braided Martial Artist had his chest pierced courtesy to his own sibling. This conjured a childish-like laughter from Turles, who started to get under Gyumao and Orin's skin a bit.

"He's just spectating as if this is some kind of sport…" Gyumao snarled.

"Cold-hearted."

Kakarot watched as Tao bled out like a pig with its head cut off. Seeing that death was his next phase in life, the young boy turned his back on him and gave his attention to Tsuru, who was wide eyed.

"N-No…" Tao and Tsuru may have had their differences and brotherly fights, but the two still cared for one another. Tsuru had always make sure to watch over his little brother when they were younger and even encouraged the man to use his skill and techniques as a way to make money, which in turn converted Tao into the perfect assassin. He never thought that he'd see the day where his baby brother was dying before his own quivering eyes. But after realizing that his brother had a bean, he quickly calmed down. The situation was just so extreme that he had forgotten about their element of surprise.

Kakarot aimed his hand at Tsuru and mouthed  _your turn._ Just as the ball of ki had left his hand, said hand had been kicked, which caused the direction of the charged attack to change. He didn't even sense the target coming and had been taken by surprise. Just immediately after, Kakarot had been punched in the face. He only slid through the ground by keeping his feet planted down strong. He quickly looked back up, spotting Tao, who had ripped his shirt off.

This had Kakarot in complete awe. "H-How?"

"YOU DIE HERE! DODON PA!"

Kakarot mimicked Tao's attack by using both of his index fingers. As Tao's supercharged attack neared his own, Kakarot fired off. The two beams that came from each individual finger ran into one another and grew in size just before colliding with Tao's, who was being overwhelmed the second that they touched. He could only look on in fear as kid's copied attack overpowered his own and swallowed him up, burning him into absolute ashes. He couldn't even scream, as the wind had been taken out of him during the process of disintegration.

"TAO!" Tsuru roared.

Kakarot smirked. "Now he's not coming back."

Turles, who had been watching over the entire time, noticed a certain action Tao took before he suddenly became revitalized. While he was just getting bored and wanted to step in, he decided to wait further and see if any others would pull off the same tricks. This time he was going to make sure to pay really close attention.

Tsuru, in a fit of rage, rushed Kakarot, hoping that his anger would propel him to rid of this demonic child. Kakarot swiftly parried away Tsuru's arm, gut-checked him, and clobbered him in the face before following up with hook so powerful that a few of his teeth had flew into the back of this throat and came flying right out of his nose. Tsuru's head was ringing and his vision immediately became blurry.

"We can't just sit back and watch him die…" Orin said.

"Tsuru is smarter than his brother," Roshi reassured Orin. "I know he has something up his sleeve."

Tsuru hopped back on his two feet and shot off into the sky, soaring high into the clouds.

Kakarot, seeing this as a challenge, decided to take off into the sky as well, flying much faster than Tsuru.

"The kid can fly, too!" Gohan exclaimed.

"This takes most people years to learn and he's just a young boy having mastered it already," Gyumao added. "Just how much potential does he have?"

Roshi squinted his eyes in hopes of getting a closer look of what was going on up there. Upon seeing a bright light of energy and a sudden rise in Tsuru's life force, his eyes widened. "He wouldn't!"

"What is he doing?"

Kakarot saw a bright light of energy ahead and didn't think nothing of it initially. Tsuru was up above with his fingers on one hand pressed to the fingers on the other. The unblocked view in his hands took the shape of a triangle and to Roshi, it became obvious that he was using a forbidden attack—one so dangerous that it could kill the very person who used it.

"Come on, brat...I'll end you right now! KIKOHO!"

**PIPIPIPIP**

As soon as Kakarot got the reading from Tsuru, he came to an absolute halt. The power was far beyond his own, but the extraordinary part was that it continued to increase.

"DIE!"

Kakarot didn't even have time to dodge. Never before had he let out a scream until now. His skin was so hot that he felt as if his flesh started to peel off. But more than that, his armor faced against so much pressure that it cracked until pieces began to decompose. And when it was at its most weakest, the entire chest-plate had been destroyed, leaving him in tattered bits of his long undergarments that fell just above his bruised knees. Kakarot's back slammed against the ground before an enormous explosion had followed.

Turles didn't expect this at all. Never before had he seen any individual capable of increasing their own power through a generated ki attack.  _Kakarot's still breathing, but barely._ He then turned his head over to Tsuru, who could be seen falling down flat on his face with a loud thud.  _And he's still alive as well…_

Turles removed his attention from Kakarot onto the dying Earthling. He wanted to see just what he would do in his supposed final moments.

_Let's see here._

"He got him!" Gyumao cheered. "There's no way he survived that!"

Roshi kept his mouth shut and stared on intensely. Even if the young child was to survive the attack, he was severely weakened, so he wouldn't be much of a threat now. He just hoped that Tsuru would be able to save himself, for if not, then their hopes would go further down the drain.  _Come on, Tsuru..._

Tsuru could feel his very life force dripping away from him by the moment. His body felt too heavy to move and his head was far too light-headed. His vision was so blurry that he could be considered blind at this point. But still, he had a chance. "I just need to…" he started to reach into his shirt.

From the very moment that he pulled out a little green bean, Turles appeared before him and stomped his boot onto the man's wrist. Tsuru let out a pained groan with his body shaking like crazy. Turles crouched down to grab the released bean. "I'll be taking that."

"CRAP!" Orin yelled. "He's got a senzu!"

Roshi saw how anxious Orin got and immediately knew what the master monk was thinking. If Turles even remotely had any idea of how the bean worked and had used it for his partner in crime, then that would spell trouble for them all. Orin didn't want this to happen. Roshi didn't either but he just hoped that the monk would betray his own philosphy by acting on emotion rather than logic.

"Don't do anything stu-"

But Orin didn't listen. The man took off before Roshi could even finish his sentence. He had his fist cocked back with his teeth grinding. "I won't let you!"

Kakarot was hard enough to fight off against and it meant for Tsuru to nearly end his life just to be able to bring the kid to death's door step. It was stressful enough having to worry about dealing with Turles all on his own, but with both of them at full power would just shoot them directly down to square one. Orin wasn't going to stand for it.

Turles picked up the bean before Orin got there and smiled. He grabbed the man's fist and gripped onto him hard. "I'm afraid that you have no choice."

**SNAP!**

Orin roared a howl with such force that it'd make wolves go envy. He fell onto his knees after his hand had been crushed, clutching his wrist as he bit his lip. Turles just looked down on the man and yanked back to force Orin's shoulder out of place, evoking an even louder yelp. Orin then fell onto his side, biting into his mouth so hard that blood dripped over the cracked asphalt.

Turles proceeded to kick Orin. The owner of Orin temple had been sent flying into the sky for hundreds of feet. He soared upward with so much speed that it was like witnessing shooting star in reverse. Once he enjoyed the sight for a few seconds, he then decided to end it right then and there. With a quick and swift motion of the hand, the bald fighter had been reduced to all the bits that had made up of his body. Blood and shreds of organs came falling down like rain.

Tsuru had reached out for Turles as he walked away but couldn't move any more. In just a matter of seconds, his face dropped down and he was motionless—dead.

The menacing dark-skinned Saiyan didn't break eye-contact with any of the rest as he walked over toward the area where Kakarot had been nearly blasted to hell. He looked down the giant square hole which was pitch black. "You alive, boy!?" Kakarot's cough echoed, which took a few seconds for Turles to catch wind of. It was faint but the older Saiyan managed to hear it just fine. "Ah, good." He plucked the senzu that he got from Tsuru down there. "Eat this if you want to live."

"Please, don't!" Gohan pleaded.

Turles turned around to face him. He folded his arms and didn't show any visible signs of potential hostility. Having thought of something far more beneficial, Turles figured that he would make an offer that they just couldn't refuse. "I won't if you all tell me where we can get beans."

Kakarot shot up from the hole down below and came back down landing on his feet with great force. The kid had no armor remaining save for his boots and undergarments. And despite being only five years old, his body was heavy-set—chunky with a bit of muscle. "W-What was that!?" He couldn't explain it, but he felt as if nothing had even happened to him! Sure, he had scratches but the bruises and internal bleeding had all came to a complete stop. Not to mention, he felt even stronger.

All of them were quiet at first. None wanted to reveal such vital information regarding the source of the Senzus for Turles and the kid could use it for their own evil means. Turles didn't particularly like how quiet they were. "So it seems like we have to make you talk." He nudged Kakarot on the shoulder. "You ready to spring right back into action?"

Kakarot gave a cheesy smile and wagged his tail side to side. He punched the palms of his hands as he flexed his body.

What was to come next out of Turles' mouth was great, valuable information—information that he wanted to be known for him and anyone partnered with him only. To make sure that no unwanted people had listened in on his conversation, he turned his scouter off.

"Our people are biologically made for battle," Turles informed the Earthlings. "With battle comes inevitable injury; evolution has forced our people to adapt. After injury, depending on how grave, our power increases dramatically." He then scanned Kakarot with his scouter as he started to walk toward the Earthlings. "His power has jumped from 124 to 261." Turles then turned off his scouter once more. "Had I waited a few more minutes, the boy would be dead. The fact that these edible beans can bring an individual from the brink of death back to life is a miracle of a weapon—a weapon that we can use."

"So what?" Roshi asked him. "We just let you have them so you can kill us and be on with it?"

"No, no," Turles shook his head. "I'm actually giving you fools a proposition. Show us where these things are made and we will spare your life, as well as the rest of this waste of a world."

Those words just seemed far too good to be true. Would they really just stop their murderous genocide for some rejuvenating beans? Could it really be as easy as that?

Kakarot's tail stopped wagging and he turned back around to face Turles. "But I wanna fight!"

"We will have many more opportunities for that," Turles reassured the child. "Stand down." Kakarot glared at Turles, but the latter of the two glared right back. Kakarot saw that Turles meant business so the child naturally acquiesced. Kakarot's lips turned to that from an upward curl to a downward one. Oh, how much he anticipated to display his increased power by effortlessly disposing of the remaining valiant souls before him.

"Fine," Kakarot huffed. "They're a waste of time anyway."

"Hehehe, not entirely. You fail to see the bigger picture, young one." Turles looked back to the Earthlings. "So, what do you all say? I know that you don't want more blood on your hands—especially your own."

"But we'd be wrong to let such evil people like you live!" Gyumao objected. He couldn't just live with that on his conscience. Knowing that he made a deal with genocidal lunatics made Gyumao feel that he'd be more of a devil than he deemed himself to be.

"Cool it!" Roshi fussed his former student. "Like the child, you also fail to see the bigger picture."

During this all, Gohan remained quiet. He understood perfectly what Gyumao meant but he also knew exactly just what thoughts were running through Roshi's mind. If he could, Gohan would put an end to these two but they were left with no other option. Whatever Roshi decided to do, then they'd have to accept. He knew what it was so he didn't utter a single word. He stood there with his hands behind his back, waiting for more words to be shared.

Roshi walked up to Turles, displaying no fear at all. He kept with a hard stare until he stood within just a few yards of the Saiyan. If he was going to settle this, then he had to do so respectfully, although it made his very blood boil to even come to a deal with such psychotic sociopaths. "I lead you to where the beans are and you promise me that you won't continue to do any harm on this world, or the people in it."

Turles nodded his head. "That is exactly it. You give us something of value and we do so in return. I'm a man of my word. So, what do you say?" Turles could feel that the old man was willing to accept, but he wasn't so sure about the other two. Gohan was very reticent so it was hard for to read him. But as for the bigger guy, he could see the redness all over his face, being that he was becoming irate.

Roshi began to extend his hand.

"I won't stand by this!" Gyumao bellowed. The big fellow hopped off his back foot and went on to attack Turles. Said Saiyan looked on, not worried in the slightest.

Kakarot was there in an instant. Gyumao had been stopped in his tracks by a little fist going straight through Gyumao's portruding gut. With blood leaking down the child's arm, Gyumao's eyes started to get shaky, as well as his entire body. "K-K…"

The sight sent a chill down Gohan's spine. Gyumao, a man who went through trials and tribulations, was killed just right there before his very eyes. He was initially all for this agreement, but now...he couldn't do it. He just couldn't.

The seasoned Martial Artist crouched down and cupped his hands together.

"KAMEEEEEEEE!"

Roshi turned around and held his hand out. "Gohan, no!"

Son Gohan, while in the midst of charging his attack, looked dead at his master. "Move, Muten Roshi! We have to end this right now!"

_Gohan's emotions are blinding his judgement._ Roshi also hated the fact that Gyumao died but it was because he acted on emotion rather than logic. Had he sat back and let things go as they were, perhaps there didn't need to be any more blood-shed. As far as Roshi was concerned, Gohan was falling right into his old friend's foot-steps.

"HAMEEEEEEE!"

Roshi turned back to Turles and Kakarot. The latter of the two stood there all nonchalant while Kakarot was just eager to fight. "I'm still taking you up on that deal." After reassuring Turles that he had no intentions of rejecting his offer, he placed his attention back to his old student. The Master martial artist closed his eyes, took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. In just the blink of an eye, he appeared behind Son Gohan, who was ready to launch his attack forward.

Gohan didn't expect to be struck with a chop aimed directly for the neck, precisely where he was meant to be taken down. His eyes involuntarily closed and he fell down, losing consciousness. Roshi quickly caught his former student and softly lied him down on the blood tainted ground of South City. "Sorry, old friend."

"That was a wise decision on your part," Turles said. Roshi huffed and just began to walk back toward Turles in a cautious manner. He keenly scrutinized the man's body language, as well as the little boy's. If there was anyone he truly had to be worried about, then it was Kakarot, though due to the fact that he was a mere subordinate and mirrored the elder, he didn't show much concern. As he grew closer, Turles shot a beam right over to where Son Gohan lied.

Roshi's eyes and mouth widened from the very moment he heard the explosion. He needed not look back to realize what had happened, and just stood there—frozen.  _N-No...Gohan._  Roshi's body began to shake with rage. "We had a deal!"

"We didn't shake on it yet," Turles reminded him. "Besides, I'm not letting someone who seeks for us dead to live, even if he is an inferior specimen. With him gone, there is no more bad blood between us."

_I can't believe this. They're...they're monsters! If I could, I'd kill them right on the spot, but what good will that really do me? What good would it do for the rest of the people on this planet?_ Roshi perfectly understood why Gohan and Gyumao acted the way they did, though he expected better from his best student. Just looking at their faces made his stomach turn but Roshi endured it.

"Are you just going to stand there?" Turles asked him. "Or...could it be that you're considering changing your mind?"

Roshi's body stiffened up.

"Because we can definitely handle that right here right now. Make it known either via your following words or actions, it matters not to me. I just expect an answer within the next five seconds."

Roshi nodded his head. His face was hot red and his body tense. The urge to jump at them and claw their faces out continued to beat itself into his brain but the old man had enough self-control. He approached Turles with an extended hand, just as he had mere moments before. "I show you where we get the beans from and you promise to never come here again."

"No," Turles shot back.

"I beg your pardon? That's the deal."

"The deal is that you give us what we want and we will make sure that we elicit no further harm onto this world," Turles clarified. "I never agreed to not coming back. We may need more in the future so what kind of deal would it be for us to not come back once we do run out of a supply?"

_I had to at least give it a shot._ "Touche," Roshi huffed. "Follow me and I'll show you."

* * *

Of the strong and weak.

Power was something only a few had and those powerless was something that the majority felt. There were two heartless genocidal people running amok this world, which was now filled with nothing but powerless individuals—even the higher entities.

Karin, an anthropomorphic white cat, leaned on with his cane as he looked down above the dark clouds of Planet Earth. He, much like Kami, could see all that transpired on Planet Earth. He knew very well why he had two unfamiliar faces directly behind him. He hated the circumstances but what were the things that he could do about it, really? He was somewhat of a sore loser but he knew when to back down, even if he had never stepped up in the first place.

Karin was already with the understanding that there was no running away from this, so the cat turned around to face them. "No need for any cliche salutations. I know of you both and I know what you want." He grabbed a small little pot and shook it. The sounds of beans beating against the walls of the little bot rang out to the ears of both Saiyans. "They're all in here."

Turles walked over to Karin and jacked the pot right out of his hand. "We will want a new supply of the same amount every time we come back." He took a peek inside and smiled widely upon seeing a grand amount of the green beans.  _With this, I'll become the most powerful warrior in the universe! It's only a matter of time! Freeza will be out the picture and the Saiyan race will truly be able to thrive!_

"Will you hold up onto your end of the bargain?" Karin asked the Saiyan.

Turles then nodded. "Of course. I'm more satisfied to have such a luxury than to continue killing more pests on this barren world." He then signalled for Kakarot to leave. The boy didn't waste any time and hopped off the tower, shooting down into the clouds far below. "See you around."

Roshi and Karin then both watched as Turles took his leave as well.

It was amazing—no—mind-boggling to have the unexpected realization that there were such beings out there in the world. Roshi always lived by the philosophy that there would be things and people much, much stronger than he, though he never expected anything to such extremes. The turtle hermit lowered his head and swallowed down hard on a lump of dry saliva.

Karin could see the disheartened expression over his former student's face and approached him. "You did well, Roshi. You let your mind guide you, not your heart. Don't beat yourself up over it." It was easier said than done, though. He could only imagine how hard it was for Roshi to make the decisions that he did, despite the loss of very important people. While many would consider Roshi a monster for shaking the hands of those that have killed hundreds, Karin saw it as a noble action. "You've saved the world."

Roshi felt as if he was at fault for the deaths of Orin, Gyumao, Gohan, Tao, and even Tsuru. He knew it wasn't his fault but at the end of the day, he didn't even oppose the intruders once and remained with his life. Was he a coward? Or just an old man using his healthy brain?

Roshi just put his head down, a single tear falling to the floor. "I can only make this up to them one way."

Karin raised his chin, curious as to how.

Roshi knew that those who he fought with today all left something behind. Gohan had his kind and kindred spirit as a reminder to help Roshi make better judgements. Tao, Tsuru, and Orin all had students of their own, from the respective Crane School and Orin Temple, or whomever managed to survive.

And Gyumao...he had a daughter.

_They're all my responsibility now._

* * *

After a rather successful mission, Kakarot is seen counting all the beans on the floor. "There's 100."

_One hundred? Why, that should last us for months, perhaps a few years_ — _depending on circumstances._ "Perfect. We shall make do with those in the meantime, then."

Though it was a success, Kakarot didn't see how. He so badly wanted to finish the job but for some reason, Turles just wouldn't let him. "Why didn't we just kill them all?"

"Kakarot, you must learn the value that people bring to you. If there's something one can give that benefits you, then you don't bestow any harm upon them. Quid Pro Quo, do you know what that means?"

Kakarot shook his head. "No. What is it?"

"You help me and I help you—a favor for a favor. You see, by them giving us these beans, we can conquer any world we desire without the fear of death. We can face those ten times stronger than us and still prevail in the end. Because of them giving us something with such value, we promise not to destroy their  _precious_  world. Do you understand?"

"Yeah."

"Good. As long as we keep their arms twisted, then we're the ones in power here. Hell, that's basically the same leverage Freeza has over our people. Kakarot, I want you to remember this."

The kid's ears perked up.

"With these beans, we will become the most powerful warriors in the entire Universe. We will be able to overthrow Freeza as well as the King of our race to live up to the Saiyans' true potential as a warrior race. Freeza only holds us back and I sure as hell know that the King doesn't do any better. All he does is listen to whatever that midget has to say to keep us alive, yet for how much longer?" He then shook his head. "Regardless, we are now able to build upon this. Before we add anyone though, we must focus on increasing our own strength. We take things step by step and before you know it, the world and all its inhabitants will be beneath our feet."

"So we'll get to fight forever?"

"You bet."

Kakarot then smiled. "I like the sound of that."

"Heh. You better."


	20. A Promising Soldier

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raditz goes on his first mission while directly under Freeza.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 20**

**"A Promising Soldier"**

* * *

Variety; something that many people would love as a luxury. With variety comes novelties, in which many things can be seen, heard, and done. Within the Freeza Force, there was a variety of people. Entities from different planets of different races that consisted of differing cultures were all around the place. Despite most people being unique in their own way, they all had one thing in common: they worked for Freeza. And because of this, they all didn't go out the way to piss one another off. Top priority was making sure that business got handled and that they served their emperor well. Other than that, they went on with their own business.

As for Raditz, he didn't fit in at all. Despite being one of the many Saiyans that worked for the Freeza Force, the young boy was the only Saiyan who accompanied Freeza on his ship as the tyrant hopped from planet to planet and galaxy to galaxy. Only those considered his top men got to operate so closely to their ruler. The kid spent a few days in the rejuvenation chamber and many more in the training room. These were his orders specifically. Abo and Kado, being the ones to happily obliged in Raditz's training, truly started to get on the kid's nerves. He had to put up with a lot thanks to them but Freeza's orders were Freeza's orders.

Everytime he sat down and ate at the dining room, he could feel the heavy stares aimed at him from around the room. Sure, Raditz was capable of knocking quite a few of these peoples' heads in, but their steadfast staring never always had the kid's hair standing on end. This made the boy anxious, causing him to involuntarily wag his tail back and forth, as if he was impatiently awaiting a tardy acquaintance.

_I miss home._

That was all he could think of these past few weeks: home. He never thought that he'd see the day in which he got homesick, but Raditz thoroughly enjoyed being able to sit back and kick his feet up whenever he was awaiting his next assignment. Here, he couldn't even eat comfortably. The presence of a Saiyan must have really been deterring for some individuals.

Being gone all this time, he wondered if Bardock ever went out to look for him like his father said that he searched for Gine. Hell, did the man even care to begin with? He couldn't help but think about the thoughts going through his father's head since his unexpected disappearance has transpired just immediately after finding out about the death of the only person that Bardock let get close to him emotionally.

**PIP**

"Combatant Raditz, Freeza would like to speak to you personally."

 _About time._ Raditz knew the only reason he was being called to that tyrant was because he had a true assignment in store for him. He wondered if the difficulty of the missions he got while back home would be any different to the ones he'd be assigned here. Given that he was now working alongside the big boys, the kid could only assume that he'd be rendered the hardest missions available. What ate at his brain most was the many more times he would come to stare death right in the eyes just as he did upon meeting Freeza for the first time ever.

The kid downed the remaining water he had in his cup prior to removing himself from the dining table. He had his armor on, as well as his scouter. Despite having the main requirements, he knew something was off.  _I feel like something's missing._ Before he stopped in over to Freeza, Raditz decided to head over to his own quarters.

The boy's room was a six by eight. While somewhat small, it was most definitely convenient for him. As soon as he entered the room, he looked over at the table across from his bed.

_Vosa's armband._

Raditz grabbed the accessory and slipped it on over his bicep. That girl's bravery in battle gave Raditz the incentive to not fear what came with combat: death. Hell, when he thought he was going to die, he actually stood up while in his most vulnerable position and fought back. The ten year old boy took pride in this fact. He was no coward. Not anymore.

The power boost he got after receiving that atrocious punishment on Planet Chew, in addition to his brutal training thanks to Abo and Kado, had really helped Raditz grow in power. At this point, he was stronger than most of Freeza's upper ranking soldiers, standing with a power of a whopping three thousand. Back home, he would be on the front-lines with the middle class soldiers, right alongside his father.

"I'm ready."

"So it's really just a race of weaklings."

While Freeza waited for Raditz's arrival, he was discussing matters of the current available mission with Dodoria, Zarbon, Abo, and Kado. Beriblu and Kikono merely listened in on the conversation as they discussed business.

From what Dodoria and Zarbon managed to gather, this mission was a cakewalk. A trained baby could complete it if necessary. However, unlike them, Freeza knew there was a catch and he caught onto it before anybody else had even considered such.

"What you fail to understand is that the creatures of Planet Rizen are highly dangerous if they manage to get you where they want you. A survivor of this assignment reported that he saw all four of his men die due to being stung by those things."

"Seriously?" Dodoria asked.

Freeza just nodded. "Abo, Kado, and the young Saiyan will all carry three units of anti-toxins. It's on their assigned ship. For if any of you are to unfortunately come across those things and be stung, then you know precisely what to do in order to rectify the situation. Also, don't forget to fill the child in on this information. Such can cause him his life."

"Yes, sir."

Abo then giggled, though Kado was quick to give him a quick nudge in the shoulder.

At that moment, Raditz had entered the room. He walked beside Abo and his brother prior to lowering himself down on one knee as a way to greet the tyrant. "At your service, Lord Freeza."

"Glad you could make it," Freeza greeted. "We were just going over your current assignment: Planet Rizen, residing around star 50. The inhabitants are extremely simple-minded, though still quite precarious. I'm sure Abo and Kado will kindly fill you in on the details as you're en route to your allocated destination. Dismissed."

And that was it. Raditz swore he could hear Abo and Kado chuckling despite the fact that no sound came from either of the twin brothers. Though he knew the dangers of going on solo missions, Raditz would much prefer to go alone than end up working with those two bastards. Oh, how much they got on his nerves. If he had to choose, he'd much rather be partnered with Prince Vegeta than these two assholes.

As soon as Raditz left the room, he received a big pat on the back from the red brother. "Better be ready, kid."

Sad enough, Raditz didn't know anything about this world at all. What were the people like? What type of climate did this planet have? And much more importantly, what forms of defense did the inhabitants of Planet Rizen possess? All of these had him thinking non-stop the entire trip there. Abo and Kado didn't even bother to answer Raditz, saying that the enigma of it all will make the venture all the more entertaining.

But the boy had a feeling all of that was just bullshit. They had something up their sleeve.

* * *

Planet Rizen was much of a beauty in its own right. The skies were pure crystal white and the waters as blue as blue could possibly be. The illumination of the son amplified the pristine beauty that was Planet Rizen's ocean, which made up of over ninety percent of the round world. As far as land, there were small green little islands that had trees attached right underneath every few meters apart.

As expected, the aquatic world had fish, though they were at the very bottom of food chain. The Rizens, who were the main targets of this world for Abo, Kado, and Raditz, were jellyfish like creatures—ones that took the appearance of a humanoid. Their insides were easily visible, meaning that their tentacles could be seen through their, though they had no organs at all. Though having a physical structure similar to any other humanoid being, they didn't have the eternal make-up, which was why they could live a rather very long time.

The gravity of the planet was particularly light, so light that Raditz, Abo, and Kado all had to put some effort into keeping their feet on land, otherwise they'd be involuntarily floating around the place.

"What a beautiful world," Kado remarked. His eyes were moving all around the place. Many worlds he had been to but very few had an alluring sight correspondent to this planet's.

Abo cracked his knuckles with a cheeky grin. "Too bad we have to mess it up." He then turned over to Raditz. "I hope that all that time we invested in you isn't for nothing, brat. Show us what you're made of."

On the verge of starting a new mission made Raditz think of the last time he had been on a real assignment. His mission on Planet Chew was a setup, so it was definitely the one before that. Regardless, he spent his time recently training so that he could be prepared in working alongside Abo and Kado.

"Where's our oxygen masks?"

Abo and Kado turned their heads over to one another simultaneously and stared. The two brothers acted as if they were reading their minds before they looked back to the kid and started laughing hysterically, with their hands clutching their bulging bellies. All this did was make Raditz look at them both as if they were a pair of idiots. Fact of the matter was, if they were on an aquatic world where most of their victims happened to be underwater, then they needed to use oxygen masks so that they could carry out the job swiftly without having to concern themselves over drowning.

"What the hell is wrong with you two?"

"Do you really think we're going to go in the water?" Abo asked him in the midst of laughter.

"Besides, kid, if you go down there, you won't even be able to walk straight with all that hair you have on your head. You'll probably break your neck."

Raditz just scoffed.  _So what the hell are we going to do then?_ If they weren't going to go underwater to carry out their mission, then what possible other alternative could there be. "Sooo?"

"So we do this!" Abo shot off into the air, with his hand far above his head. A bright blue ball of ki charged in the palm of his hand. Seeing what his brother was up to, it didn't take really long for Kado to follow suit. The two brothers stood by side, with their hands above their heads with the effort of generating energy to attack.

Raditz just watched on to see what would happen next. The kid crossed his arms and watched on as if he was a spectator watching a simple sport.

Once the two balls of ki crashed the surface of the water, a giant circle had been formed as everything splashed. The deeper that the two attacks went, the more water that came up. Mere seconds pass by prior to a loud boom taking place. A bright flash enveloped the entire area, virtually blinding Raditz and his peers that caused the disruption.

Once everything had settled down, the three all just sat there and waited. There was an abnormal gaping hole formed underwater, which had caused the entire planet to shake. The manner in which the targeted inhabitants of the planet had all emerged was as if they were being summoned—like Gods.

As dozens and dozens of them came up from down below, Abo, Kado, and Raditz all started to look on in confusion. Each and every single one of them clicked their scouters in hopes of getting a power-level reading, though to no avail. They didn't get anything at all, which was quite worrying.

"What the hell is wrong with these things!?" Raditz asked them.

"They...they don't even have bones! Nothing but tentacles and a box head…"

"Watch behind you, fools!" Raditz warned.

Abo and Kado turned around and split apart to evade the groups that charged toward them head on. The creatures were slow, but the inability to read their power-levels and pinpoint their locations wasn't something that could help them keep leverage.

From afar, Abo and Kado locked eyes and nodded at once. They both knew the risks of getting too close with just one of these things, so they knew what preventive actions they should take. Without warning, the brothers rocketed up into the sky and started to blast each and every Rizen they had in sight to oblivion. It didn't take much effort to reduce them to nothing at all, so that was precisely what they continued to do.

Raditz, one the other hand, had ideas of his own. As a Saiyan, he had his preferred style of handling enemies, no matter what they were capable of. The kid hopped from target to target, punching them all just one time in order to establish a kill. At the rate in which he was going, the young boy was knocking them all off just as quick as Abo and Kado were.

The more he did this, the more routine it felt. There were hundreds upon hundreds of these things within the vicinity. All moved with the speed equivalent to having a power-level of zero, though. Because of Raditz's superiority in strength and quickness, he just could not be defended against.

Well, for the moment.

With each and every Rizen he had killed, the more he got to release his frustration out. He didn't let go of the fact that Prince Vegeta turned his back on him so quickly, nor did he just get over his mother's death. That, and the death of a potential great comrade. This fueled Raditz's desire to kill more and more. His mind wasn't directly on these things, but the aggression that had been built up because of it was now being alleviated.

But he did get grabbed.

Raditz pulled his arm away, though the boy had been grabbed once more. One of the Rizens wrapped their tentacles around his neck as another wrapped theirs under his armpits and around his shoulders.

"L-Let go of me!"

And that's when the feeling of thousands of volts started to go through the kid's body. Raditz was paralyzed, unable to move a muscle, but he sure as hell did feel the pain. His howls scorched the heavens of the planet, though that didn't keep his attackers from injecting him with electricity and poison.

"H-HELPPPP!"

Abo and Kado both immediately stopped in their tracks upon hearing the boy's cry for help.

"Uh-oh."

Though neither of the two could really care if Raditz was to get gravely hurt or not, they knew that Freeza wouldn't really appreciate if Raditz died so soon, especially after he went out of his way to ensure the kid's survival. Knowing what was at risk here, Abo and Kado shot off to the kid's rescue. They wanted to have far much more fun, but if they were even just a second late, then their heads would be on a stake on some desolate planet.

They knocked off those who held Raditz and killed them without a second thought. The Saiyan child couldn't do anything but helplessly fall down. The only part of his body that moved was his eyes, and that was because it trembled violently.

Kado caught the kid before he could go underwater and set him down on land. Raditz, while lying on his back, started to spazz out. Foam started to come out his mouth and his entire body started to twitch, causing him to almost flop like a fish out of water. It was embarrassing but at the same time he couldn't help himself.

His mind was a complete blank. His eyes were wide open, though everything was pitch black. He knew his body was in pain, though he was far too numb to realize just how much damage was being bestowed upon him.

Kado folded his arms and laughed. "Oops. I think we forgot to tell you what these things were capable of. Freeza had warned us about them but you were a bit too late to the meeting." He started to smack his lips. "That's what happens when you're not punctual in this business. Miss out on any valuable piece of info and it can potentially cost you your life, brat."

Raditz started to wheeze as his face grew puffy and red. His throat went numb and the capability to breathe was just not there anymore. He was absolutely deprived of air.

"As much as I'd love to see an idiot pay for their foolish mistakes, I myself would be a fool to let you die." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a gun with a needle attached to it. Kado proceeded to crouch down near Raditz and stabbed him in the vein of the neck with it prior to pressing down on a button so that the anti-toxin could be injected.

Abo, after taking care of most of the problem, came down, barely breaking a sweat. The twin placed his hands on his hips. "He gonna live?"

Kado removed himself from the kid and nodded his head. "Sure. Let's go finish this. The cure should kick in but he'll be in pain by the time he wakes up, so he'll need rest."

"Well, let's get on with it."

"Let's."

The two took off.

Raditz managed to move his fingers, though by simply trying to shift a centimeter, a sharp pain went through his body. The pain was damn near unbearable, but he at the very least knew he was going to survive.

In the back of his mind, Raditz did wonder, what if Vegeta was right there. What if Vegeta had the cure in his hand? Would he even give Raditz a chance or just leave him to die? Despite Kado throwing insults his way as he was down, they still saved his life—something far much more than what Vegeta would do. Maybe Raditz was more fortunate to be working alongside these fools after all.

* * *

After the mission had been completed, the trio had immediately attended to Freeza so that they could make their report. Zarbon, Dodoria, Kikono, and Beriblu stared at Abo and Kado like a couple of disappointed parents would do their child. Freeza, on the other hand, didn't keep his eyes off Raditz. The boy looked extremely uncomfortable, which he didn't seem to be when he first came to him prior to leaving for his most recent assignment.

Not a single word had been uttered yet amongst the eight people in the room. Freeza didn't even do as much as greet the three after they had bowed to them. As the silence continued on in the room, the unsuspecting tension had continued to grow.

Abo and Kado felt as if they had done something wrong, even though they had followed every single order to an absolute tee.

Or so they thought.

"Now, from what I'm aware of, the mission was carried out nicely?" Freeza broke the ice.

"Yes, m'lord," Abo and Kado both said in synch.

Freeza was quick to notice that Raditz hadn't done as much as make eye-contact with him. The kid bit his lip as he was still very much in pain. He hoped to keep it inconspicuous but Freeza was just far too observant—well when he wanted to be.

"Now, Abo and Kado. You two are one of my best men in the Freeza Force; the best working duo in the Freeza Force with Dodoria and Zarbon being not too, too far behind. You're not only powerful, but extremely efficient in your missions. And seeing how your duties on Planet Rizen had been carried out is nothing of a surprise to me. You wiped the slate as swiftly as anyone could have expected."

"Thank you, sire."

" **BUT…"**

This caused both of their hearts to skip a beat. Never before had Freeza ever complimented the two and followed up with a  _but_. This only meant one thing: that they didn't carry out a specific order as they had been requested to.

"I vividly recall myself ordering the both of you to notify this young soldier of the risk that came with interacting with those creatures." Not even giving either of the two a chance to speak, Freeza opened his hands, nonverbally signalling that they keep their mouth shut. "Now I do not wish to hear any excuses. Every word I tell you, I choose carefully beforehand, and I am most certain that I say what I mean with utmost coherence. So the next time that you even consider not going through with a simple order, be sure to never return and ensure that you can't be found, for if you do return, then the remains won't be found. Are we at an understanding?"

Abo and Kado stood up on their two feet. "Yes, sir!"

"You two are dismissed."

Freeza redirected his eyes back over to Raditz, who was beginning to turn around and follow the twin brothers. "I said two, meaning you are excluded from being dismissed. I still wish to have a conversation with you, young one."

Raditz stopped in his tracks and let out a quiet sigh. All he wanted to do was go to his quarters so that he could sleep and wake up the next day with the pain all gone. Once the two brothers had left, Raditz then turned around.

"How can I be of service?" Just asking this simple question felt as hard as doing push-ups without using any harms. The kid's vision was going blurry and his system was still trying to adjust back to normal. He needed sleep and he hoped to get to bed as soon as possible so he could get as much rest as possible. All he had to do was tolerate the tyrant for a bit longer before he could lie his head down on a soft pillow.

"You can be of service by letting either me, Dodoria, or Zarbon know whenever any other member of the Freeza Force doesn't happen to be treating you with proper respect."

"What Abo and Kado did could have costed you your life, kid," Dodoria specified. "Everyone here knows that Freeza sees something in you and you can expect a bit of jealousy for it. He sees that you're as loyal as we are and that you hold a lot of promise. With those two things, you're one of the greater assets here."

"And for that reason, you need to be treated as any other elite soldier," Zarbon added.

Freeza smiled. "Couldn't have said it better myself, gentleman." Freeza motioned his hoverchair closer to Raditz. "Now, as you can see, Zarbon and Dodoria will be watching over and out for you whenever I am unable to. I didn't bring you close to me just so that you could be any other common soldier. You, Raditz, are more than that."

"And don't be a pushover," Beriblu advised the young boy. "Once you stand up for yourself, then we can hope that any of your harassers back off. If not, come to any one of us and the situation will be resolved immediately."

Raditz just couldn't believe that he was actually hearing all of this. He had heard some stories about Freeza, stories of him being the coldest and most unforgiving being there is. His most loyal soldier could die and he wouldn't bat an eye. Hell, Freeza didn't hesitate in killing someone if they messed up—even just a little bit. Subsequent to hearing all that was being told to him, Raditz came to the conclusion that all he truly needed to do was remain loyal and follow orders. He help Freeza and Freeza helps him.

Raditz, though pained, still endured it and bowed down before Freeza. "T-"

Freeza grabbed Raditz by the chin and forced the boy back up to his feet. This caught Dodoria, Zarbon, Beriblu, and even Kikono off-guard. "No need to bow before me. Go rest up and be back here as soon as you wake up. I have another assignment that needs completion."

Raditz nodded.

"You're dismissed."

The kid turned around, with the biggest smile on his face as he exited the room. Upon taking a left and heading toward the direction in which his quarters resided, he could see Abo and Kado having conversation with a few soldiers in the corridors. The brothers looked at him for a split second and just stared. Raditz glared daggers at them both as he carried on his way.

So what if Kado saved his life? They were the reason that he was put in that uncomfortable position in the first place.

"Their day will come..." Raditz mumbled under his breath.


	21. The Kindness of an Evil Soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bardock, Nappa, and Zorn are all attacked. One of the three, despite the horrendous atrocities they've committed throughout their lifetime, put on a display of kindness that was never expected of him.

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 21**

**"The Kindness of an Evil Soul"**

* * *

There was merely one expectation that came from the mind of a soldier of a warrior race: the liberty to fight and do as they pleased. Some others were mere gluttons, some few combatants preferred to focus on their career path, and others merely desired the blood-shed that came with their work.

Everyone just wanted to live on their own terms and because of this, their expectations were very low, though it wasn't as if the common Saiyan realized such. This was the main reason as to why it was so easy to satisfy them. Give most Saiyans a good fight, fine meals, and a little cot to lay their backs on every now and then, and you're pretty much on their good side.

Bardock was like that - when he was younger - in the days of which battle was the only thing on his mind. Being a lower-class warrior, he had typically been underestimated and overlooked. Upon realizing that he'd be insanely lucky to have one single person in this world care for him, the scarred Saiyan now knew that he was on his own for the most part, though it didn't make him out to be a total sociopathic sadistic brute like most of his peers. The desire for affection and congeniality was concealed down inside and he lived by the code of  _survival of the fittest._

Anyone could underestimate his power. Hell, that was the main reason he was put into so many dangerous situations in the first place. Many comrades had fallen from his young age and up, though he never did. By simply using his head and then relying on his intuition, the Saiyan always made it out of what seemed to be near impossible conquests.

Bardock lied down on his bed, eyes glued to the dry ceiling that resided above him. For the past hour he hadn't blinked at all. He stared so intensely that he forced a blurry outline of the single face that he had missed the most.

_Gine._

He missed her so much. Some nights he felt like crying but he knew all too well that he'd be punching himself in the face for even just letting himself do something like that. Despite letting himself go soft over the past few years, he'd be damned to ever let tears fall down his hardened face.

_Kakarot. Raditz._

He missed his children, too. Many of his own people didn't seem to mature as they got older, save for only in combat, but Bardock did in other areas as well. Despite putting on a hard act, he genuinely cared for Gine and it showed. Though to suppress what he felt like was a weakness resulted in him not really showing much care for Raditz during his childhood before he became an official combatant. He had just started really talking to the boy and now all that's spoiled because he's out here and chances are, he won't be seeing his first-born again until he's a full grown adult.

Really a shitty life Saiyans lived. With all the time he had to think to himself, especially subsequent to self-reflection, it all just made sense.

Bardock wanted nothing more but for his kids to make it out there in this cold, merciless world. He couldn't care less of how they turned out, just that they got to live and journey out in a life that they found fulfilling. For Bardock knows that the only thing he had fulfilling was Gine...till he lost her.

Bardock started to feel his bed beginning to shake and he knew for a fact that he wasn't doing anything to cause it to move in such an abnormal manner. "What the hell?" The bare-chested Saiyan removed himself from the bed to see it starting to tremble even more. It wasn't just the bed, though. The entire room in its entirety was trembling.

Cracks in the walls started to form due to the insane pressure being built and before Bardock could get his armor and scouter, the entire ceiling had caved in on him.

Surrounding the house that had collapsed, there were dozens of Zoon people surrounding the building, rendering hundreds of energy attacks that relentlessly came from all angles. Before he and any of the others could do anything to fight the inevitable, the house had collapsed on all of them. Everyone that had caused this just stopped and looked on with their eyes wide and some even full of fear. They knew what move they were pulling by doing this and they could only hope that it took care of all the Saiyans.

But seeing a hand come up from the ruins and elicited a gasp from all those that looked on.

Bardock's face wasn't similar to that of a very happy one. A retard with half a brain would quickly deduce that it was the Zoon people who had orchestrated this attack around this time period. The scarred warrior wasn't very surprised but it didn't mean that he wasn't upset. He invested far more than he needed to and this is how they repaid him?

Go figure.

Nappa rose up from the ruins, bruised, scratched, and absolutely livid. The very first Zoonian he had placed his eyes on had been attacked and decapitated without mercy. The only thing that the giant soldier wore was his undergarments, and given that he had no time to put on armor, he just went into rage mode. He didn't care for blasting people to bits - no - he wanted blood on his hands. He wanted to feel the skulls he punched being crushed. He wanted the warm dry blood leaking off his hardened knuckles. He wouldn't be satisfied until he got his revenge for being disturbed, and betrayed...all while he was just beginning to sleep.

With all the attention now focused on Nappa, Bardock wasn't getting attacked. The Saiyan removed his feet from the rubble, where his pants could be seen tattered by the ankle area. He knew that Zorn was still around here, so he had to look. After a few seconds of tossing debris away behind him, he managed to see a portion of Zorn. By solely looking at his face, he could tell he wasn't in the best of shape.

"Zorn," Bardock called out, "are you all right?"

Unlike Nappa and Bardock, Zorn was sound asleep long before the attack had even took place. Because of this, he had took the worst of it. The mid-class soldier rose his shaky hands from below and struggled just to get up. As soon as Bardock saw his bloody arm, he grabbed the Saiyan's hand and aided in bringing him back up on his feet.

"Hey, you okay?"

Zorn removed his hand from Bardock and winced in pain as he grinded his teeth. "What does it look like?" he mumbled. Zorn felt as if his body was made of literal metal. It pained him to do the purest action such as breathing.

"One of them's down! Kill him!"

Bardock turned around, coming face to face with five different trainees. All had their hands directed for Zorn, who appeared to be an easy target. Seeing them made Bardock grimace. "We help you out and this is how you repay us?" He spat at the ground. "Prince Vegeta should have just eradicated you all to hell and save us the time."

In a blitzing speed, Bardock rammed the bone of his elbow into the face of the tallest person there. He came down on his feet, swiftly turned around, blasted a man through the stomach, and hopped off his back-foot to send the third person flying with a brutal haymaker to the face. The last two rushed at him from behind, though Bardock was already one step ahead. The experienced warrior backhanded them both, proceeded to lower his arms, elbow them in the gut. Once they doubled over, clutching their stomachs like madmen, Bardock turned around to look them both in the eyes as they fell to their knees.

He wanted to speak to them, but he was at an utter loss for words. The fact that he actually took some pride in teaching an inferior species to defend themselves better, only to be stabbed in the back, was just a feeling he couldn't come to verbally express at the moment. All he could do was grab them both by the throat and picked them up. He gradually tightened his grip as he stared into coldly with a blank, soulless expression. He showed no signs of tension or anger. He merely watched as the life left the eyes of the two before he dropped them down beneath his feet.

Zorn, while on one knee, clutching at his chest, caught two people flying away out the corner of his eye. He wondered if Nappa noticed but Zorn realized that the balding warrior was far too busy jumping from one person to another. Despite his eyes giving off double the amount of what he saw, Zorn knew for a fact that it had to be Chupi who was running away; he was flying off with his little brother. Seeing this caused a sudden rage to overcome him.

 _Bastards! They really think that they can just fly off away with their lives? I'll show_  them...

Despite the pain that came with making an effort, Zorn took off without warning.

Bardock saw Zorn flying off and immediately looked to where he was headed. Upon seeing Ipu and his big brother just out in the distance, it had instantly clicked in his head.  _Not good._ Before Bardock could make an effort to follow Zorn, he had been surrounded by ten people.

"You die here, Saiyan."

Those four words were spoken with so much venom and hatred that it made Bardock question just how much he actually hated being a slave to Freeza's organization. These people couldn't even last an entire year being trained by those superior to them while Bardock had been following orders from some lizard looking freak for years. But now wasn't the time to think about such matters.

The warrior narrowed his eyes at every single one of those by him and clinched his fists. Though he couldn't describe it, Bardock loved when his enemies felt that they had the drop on him. It was times like these when he was underestimated that he cherished seeing the shock on their faces whenever he beat them. But as far as Bardock was truly concerned, he was going to make this quick so that he could tend to Zorn. Any person in their right mind would see that the experienced mid-class soldier would have trouble fighting on his own, especially in his condition. Nappa sure didn't care so Bardock was the only person that could ensure Zorn's life to remain intact.

"No, I don't."

* * *

Chupi had the pressure of flying away with two large pieces on his back. For one, he had a giant wooden box of treasure guarded by chains and locks and his brother was sitting on top of it due to the fact that he was far too slow to keep up with him through simple means of aerial flight.

Ipu couldn't disregard the heavy feeling that he had. His heart was at the bottom of his stomach because he could hear the screams of his own brethren being disposed of like common trash. How could his big brother just leave them all to die like that? Didn't he want to fight with them?

"Why can't we go back!?" Ipu asked.

"Because I don't want either of us to die, damnit! Ipu, we've been over this already so I don't want any stupid lip from you right now!"

Though it wasn't obvious to his little brother, Chupi had never been this concerned before. He knew that any of those Saiyans could catch up to him within mere seconds if they so pleased, and it was for that very reason that he hoped that the distraction he created would last them long enough to escape in one of the pods that he personally moved to a location only he was aware of.

_All we have to do is escape to a civilized world, abandon the ship, and use one of theirs to head off to another world where we can live peacefully. All the treasure should last us a lifetime._

It was as simple as that but it was far easier said than done.

Chupi descended down into a small area surrounded by dead branches and dry lakes. This was a spot where very few attended, so it was just perfect for escape. Here on, there was an attack pod that Chupi had personally stolen.

As soon as he touched down on his feet, Ipu jumped off and the chest fell flat on the ground, kicking up a decent amount of dust. "Get in, Ipu." Doing as told, Ipu had entered the pod. "The destination was set for Planet Vegeta but I changed it to some world far, far away from it. It's not too far from any civilized worlds…"  _I hope._ Chupi really didn't know where the hell they were going. If anything, he was just letting luck and fate handle the rest.

"How will the chest fit in?" Ipu asked.

"We'll just have to make it fit…"

"None of you will be fitting in anything that takes off on this planet!"

Hearing the voice of no other than Zorn made Chupi's heart skip two beats. He quickly went over to the hatch of the pod and closed it. He had his back up against it, guarding his brother and their only escape option with his life.

"Zorn…" Chupi hissed.

Said Saiyan was limping on one leg, grunting as he grinded his teeth. To be caught while he was sleeping was perhaps the most unfortunate thing he had to face. Everything came falling on him while he was at his most vulnerable. Such an action couldn't be forgiven.

"Best be assured that you are going to pay," Zorn said. "Bardock and Nappa are already tearing your peers limb from limb. But what they're doing to your weakling friends will look like child's play compared to what I'm going to do to you, you coward."

Heavy breaths. Constant bleeding from open wounds. Fractured foot. Trembling body.

Seeing in how such piss poor condition Zorn was, Chupi's body language changed; he stood upright and folded his arms. A curl of the lips even formed, which Zorn had immediately noticed. "I'd like to see you try."

A visible vein could be seen coming down from his temple near his eye.  _The audacity!_ Zorn knew he was in a weakened state but he'd rather fight and die then back down like some gutless ingrate. "You die here!"

Zorn launched a violet ball of ki toward his target with as fast and as hard as he could possibly muster.

Chupi smacked the ball of ki away with the back of his hand, surprising not only his brother, but Zorn as well. From the very moment he did this, all the anxiety that Chupi once had, just vanished. The worry and concern he had not too long ago was now substituated by that of confidence and hubris. "That all you got!?"

Zorn growled and hopped off his back foot.

Chupi mirrored the Saiyan's actions.

**BAM!**

Zorn was struck in the face with enough force to send him flying backward. Chupi followed suit by rushing in on the Saiyan once more and punching him across the face. He then rendered him more strikes directly for the gut, which left Zorn in a state of shock. The Saiyan couldn't help but virtually shriek in pain with each strike. Despite the horrid pain that came with every punch or kick, he wasn't going to swallow his pride and back down so easily. In the name of the King and all the things he stood for as a upper-ranking combatant of the infamous warrior race, Zorn was going to fight to the death.

Zorn swiped at Chupi but to no avail. The former reappeared behind the latter and kneed him directly in the spine. Zorn fell down onto his knee as he clutched his back with his mouth agape. Chupi grabbed him from behind by the hair and rammed his face into the ground mercilessly. "How's it feel to be on the other side of the moon, huh!?" Chupi started to drag the Saiyan's face through the dirt as he flew. Ipu's eyes grew wide the closer his big brother got but he sent Zorn flying at the very last second.

He rushed in at him once more and penetrated the Saiyan's back with his elbow. Zorn hollered at the top of his lungs; his echoes forcing the dark clouds to move at a quicker rate. He and his cracked back came falling down at such an extreme velocity that his fall formed a crater down below. Chupi coming down with both feet pressuring against Zorn's back did nothing but elicit more screams from the Saiyan.

"How does it feel!? Huh!" Chupi stomped on his back more. "To be belittled!? To be humiliated in front of your own!? Treated like a minor disturbance in the wind with no sense of direction!?" He kicked Zorn over on his back. The Zoonian spoke with so much hatred and volume that spit involuntarily came from his mouth, tainting the Saiyan's already bloodied skin. All the pent up rage and aggression he had towards Zorn was being put on the spot. "You Saiyans and your bullshit act! You claim to be superior and the strongest, the best warriors!" He placed the palm of his hand on Zorn's great bit of hair and lifted him up so that he could pull him in closely. "So tell me one thing: if you Saiyans are so mighty...then why did your  **Prince** come here telling us to pledge allegiance to  **Freeza!** From what I saw with my own two eyes, Freeza isn't a Saiyan! He's something more, above you filth! You project your feelings of inferiority onto us, to make yourselves feel high and mighty when you're all nothing more but slaves yourselves!" He rammed Zorn's back of the head back against the ground. "How dare you try to turn us into you! We will  **NEVER** be like you! At least we have the guts to stand up for ourselves, despite being kicked down over and over again! You lot can't even do that for yourselves."

"Coming from the person who made the decision to run away," Bardock spoke from afar.

Bardock's voice had caught the attention of Zorn, Chupi, and even Ipu. Chupi figured that he would be able to finish Zorn off without any interruption but of course, he continued to ramble his mouth on for far too long.

"We run away to live another day so we can stand up and fight back sometime in the future!" Chupi retorted.

"Heh, sure." Bardock didn't buy that in the slightest. "Asides from that, everything else you've said is completely right. We Saiyans are slaves, and we're too cowardly to fight back against Freeza. Thing is, we're smart enough to know it's a losing battle. And also, we do know what it's like to be treated like trash. Everytime Freeza comes in, he shows little care by wrecking what comes out of our pockets to build. Hell, he's even killed some of our top men before. He instills fear in our people so that we remain loyal to him. That was exactly what he did to your people when he visited, wasn't it?"

Chupi was at a loss for words briefly. He started to become ashamed of the fact that he was even having this conversation with such a vile specimen. "And why should I even listen to you!? You're one of them: a Saiyan!"

Bardock gave a sarcastic frown. "And of all my peers, who was the sole person to treat you with respect? Who went out of their way to make sure your little brother didn't get beat on? I had your best interests in hand despite us all riding in a shitty lake with no paddle and a hole in the boat." Bardock scoffed. He could see that Chupi was swallowed up so much in his rage that he couldn't see reason. Regardless, Bardock still wanted to help him.

Banging could be heard coming from the attack ball that Ipu was inside. His words were faint but still heard. "Don't! Mister Bardock is good! Please don't hurt each other!"

Bardock tilted his head. "Are you going to listen to your little brother or ignore his wishes?"

Chupi just stood there, his entire body shaking, which showed how livid he was. Who cares if Bardock was there to help them in little moments? He was still apart of something much worse and even went as far as enabling it! He could see the good in this man, he really could, but he still couldn't stand him. "Fine," he acquiesced.

Bardock smiled. He turned around and let Chupi follow him until both came directly before the attack pod. Bardock opened the hatch and as soon as Ipu could, the little boy hugged them both.

"Thank you, Mister Bardock!"

Chupi had to hide a smile on his face. "I thought you were upset just a few minutes ago, you little twerp."

Ipu hopped back down onto the ground, giggling. "Yeah, but I thought you two were going to hurt each other! I told you that Mister Bardock isn't a bad guy!"

"You're really going to just let us go like this?" Chupi asked.

Bardock nodded. He really didn't see any reason as to not do so. To go out of his way to make their lives a further living hell would merely show how sadistic he is. The catch, though, was that Bardock takes no pleasure in seeing other's pain. He'd rather those excel in a positive light rather than be dragged down into a negative one. "There will be nothing good coming out of me stopping you or letting you go free. But if I let you go free, then something good will come out of it for you and your brother."

Hearing the words come out of Bardock's mouth was one thing but to see his insouciant attitude that displayed no potential signs of ill will told Chupi everything he needed to know. "I guess you're not bad after all, Bardock." He extended his hand.  _This is probably the only Saiyan hand I'll ever shake._

Deciding to be reciprocal, Bardock also extended his hand in an effort to establish some form of amiability.

Bardock expected a nice and firm grip from someone like Chupi, though it was much the contrary. In fact, his hand felt as if it was as soft as mashed potatoes. As he locked eyes with the Zoonian, he saw nothing but white. Chupi's mouth was ajar and blood started to leak from a hole dead center in his forehead down onto his tongue. "K-K…"

"Chupi!" Ipu screamed.

Bardock, having completely forgotten about Zorn, looked over to see said Saiyan barely standing up right, huffing and puffing. "B-Bastards…" Bardock had just got promoted and sent to carry out his first duty as a mid-class warrior and this is what he does. "Bardock, you traitor!"

Bardock's eyes narrowed so much that it appeared as if he was purposely squinting. Here he was, giving Chupi the opportunity to continue to live and despite his own effort, this is what happens?

Zorn was sluggish and limping, as if he was on his very last life. The upper-class Saiyan didn't remove his glare from Bardock, who would be having a heart-attack by now if stares could kill.

Ipu was down on his knees, shaking his big brother's body violently. "C-Chupi...wake up…" tears streamed down his eyes. "Wake up!"

"Once Nappa gets here, he'll kill you, Bardock! You and your little friend! We're going to take that treasure and bring it to the King! You will be buried with the rest of this barren world!" He then smiled. "Or better yet, I'll have Nappa turn you in for your treachery! We'll bring you back to the King and he'll make a great example out of you. Heh."

Bardock, though boiling with rage, did his best to keep cool. "Wrong. Once Nappa gets here, you'll be dead." Zorn's soft chuckles stopped and he just stared at Bardock. Surely he wasn't implying that he'd take it a step further and actually kill him. Though he wanted to ask, he figured that it'd be best to let Bardock finish speaking. "He's going to ask what happened and I'll tell him the truth-well for the most part. You were too weak and by the time I got here, you were dead, so I killed your murderer but the other survived. That's the story and you won't be living to see me tell it."

just thinking about Bardock doing all that he said made Zorn pop an eye vessel. It was bad enough that he was mad enough to the point where he could only see red, but now his eyes were absolutely red.

"YOU DARE!?"

Bardock nodded. "I do." As stressful as this current moment was, he was sure to act all nonchalant. This would just contribute to Zorn's growing anger, which ultimately plays in Bardock's favor.

Zorn, in a fit of rage, dashed over to Bardock. His back was on the verge of being broken, as well as his foot, but he didn't care. He used anger to fuel his movements and he hoped that this would be the catalyst to Bardock's righteous death.

Before Zorn got close, Bardock pushed Ipu away with his foot prior to dodging all of his attacker's attempted punches by simply moving his head side to side and around. Bardock made sure to back up every once and a while, carefully placing his feet down as he embarrassed Zorn, who couldn't do as much as graze the younger warrior. Zorn stepped down on his right foot and let out a pained groan, which caused him to pause. Bardock capitalized on this and kneed him in the gut prior to elbowing him right on the back.

Bardock raised his foot directly above Zorn's head and remained like this for a while. His eyes motioned over to the traumatized Ipu. "This is for your brother."

**SPLAT!**

Bardock soaked his feet with the blood that oozed out from Zorn's ears and ignored the pieces of skull that picked at the sole of his feet.

Ipu didn't want to move as he was too scared. Still, Bardock knew it wouldn't be good for the boy to remain here; he had to go home. The world is gonna be scary without his big brother to guide him but when push comes to shove, even the weak can become strong and make it out.

"C-Chupi…" Ipu sniffed. It was crazy how one could be right there one second and then gone the very next. From day one, he always had his big brother. Ipu barely remembered his parents as they suffered a premature death when he was just a baby. Chupi was more than a brother, taking the role of their parents and even best friend. He was everything. Chupi was his world.

Bardock, having just been in this kid's shoes not even half a year ago, managed to sympathize. After having loss Gine, the scarred warrior hadn't went on a conquest mission yet. And besides, it made him contemplate heavily. All the millions of lives he had took as he hopped from planet to planet, wiping out entire civilizations; he fought with a smile on his face, not because he took pleasure in bringing death and destruction, but because he just loved the thrill of battle. He never looked back on how his victims felt, but as he had more time to think to himself subsequent to Gine's passing, he couldn't help but ponder it from time to time. He didn't feel right when he lost Gine, so he knew it just wasn't right at all. Bardock didn't have a bad moral compass, but his recent feelings made him think about his past actions and how said actions made many people feel. Damage caused to one person can make a ripple effect go on for years. But damage to many? That's everlasting.

There's just no coming back from that.

Bardock crouched down to get eye-level with the kid. As reluctant as he was to do so, Bardock decided to place his hands on the kid's shoulder. "Ipu." Never before did Bardock feel so out of place but he had to get this over with before Nappa found his location and started asking questions. "Ipu, listen to me." The boy started to wipe his eyes, but he couldn't stop crying. Bardock, though he didn't want to lose his patience, didn't see any other way to get the boy's attention but to scare him a little. "Ipu, listen to me! If you want to live, you'll stop crying right now and get back on your feet!" Bardock then stood up and barked at him. " **Get up!** "

Ipu was hesitant but he did as told. The kid rose up onto his two feet, wiping his moist eyes. He couldn't take his mind off his big brother but his attention was now onto the only other person he respected most in this world.

"I'm going to set the coordinates of that ship to a world where I know that there's very little problems. The treasure you have here will be able to last you a lifetime. No matter what, trust nobody who's too friendly and only look out for yourself. If there's someone who really needs help, help them, but be sure to continue your path. Do you understand?"

Ipu nodded.

"Good." Bardock looked over to Zorn. The Saiyan, though with tattered pants, still could be put to use. He got an idea.

Bardock, after setting the coordinates for Ipu, had stripped Zorn's dead body naked and used his pants so full it up with the treasures that remained inside the chest. It started to get rather stuffy, but Bardock made sure to most definitely find a way to fit it all. Once Ipu was inside, he placed the treasure on the boy's lap.

"Whatever you do, survive. I don't care how you do it, either, just stay alive. Look out for number one and keep your best interests at heart. That's what your brother would want."

As the door to the pod started to close, Ipu pressed his hands up against the glass of the circular ship, breathing heavily. His face crinkled and body began to quiver just moments before tears began to fall down his cheeks. The pod rumbled a bit before it slowly elevated off the ground. The entire time, Bardock nor Ipu had broken eye contact with one another.

**PZSHOOM!**

Like a spaceship on blast off, the attack pod zoomed out and twinkled like a little star. Bardock's hair had blown back due to the strong wind subsequent to take off, though he remained unfazed.

He had hoped to be able to save two lives today, but one was enough.

Perhaps Ipu was right; maybe Bardock wasn't all that bad after all. Though the Saiyan would like to personally think so, he already knew that he's done far too much. Whatever good he had in his heart was meant for small and rare, yet meaningful moments like these.

"Good luck out there."


	22. Aspirations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gumeel loses the only joy in her life; Freeza explains to Raditz on his current relationship with the Saiyans and just how important Raditz's future actions are; Turles breaks down to Kakarot his real end game; Prince Vegeta shows a different side of himself; and we get into the mind and heart of a near forgotten Saiyan.

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 22**

**"Aspirations"**

* * *

To get to spend time with one's own child was a joy. Most of Gumeel's peers didn't see the point of it, but that was because they all lived in a box, as they preferred to stay in an area or form of environment that was most familiar to them. Bonding with their own child wasn't apart of that. Something that didn't contribute to the desire for battle or some form of sustenance was looked at as insignificant.

But as the time passed, she's come to enjoy teaching her young daughter how to work in the meat distributor. She wasn't even a year old yet and was able to walk on her feet, carry objects, place them, and use them. Elery wasn't even able to speak fluently yet but she was working the meat distribution job as if she'd been doing so for years now.

The work place, as usual, smelled of pure raw and fresh meat, which would at times get her rather hungry, though the woman wasn't uncultered to be exact; she loved cooked food.

"Now scoop that on in this bag." Gumeel got out a green giant, empty sack, which she spread out so that the sliced meat so that it can all fit. "See, we give some to warriors who ask while the rest are sent to cook businesses."

"Ha." Elery had put all the meat into the sack.

Gumeel tied the bag, placed it over her shoulder, and walked over to the other side of the house. There was a stack of stuffed bags of meat organized and all separated. There was a category of those that can be taken by any combatant who desired prior to heading out and there were those that had to be delivered to the cooks.

"Good." Gumeel placed her hands on her hips. "All done...well for now, at least!"

She loved the fact that her daughter was so conscientous when it came to work. To be this young and diligent meant that she'd have a career with absolutely no problems as she got older. They'd grow old together, go out and maybe hunt from time to time, and however else a Saiyan mother and child could do to bond with one another. She hoped to have a relationship with her daughter that she never had with her own family.

**Knock Knock**

Gumeel turned around to face the person who knocked on the walls of her workplace. Her eyes stumbled upon a blue haired woman who had a pad in her hand. She had this blank expression on her face as she showed up, one displaying that she was there for business and business only. When she saw her child for the first time subsequent to Elery's birth, one of the people that told her everything there was to know about her child was this woman - or an exact replica. She had an idea or two as to why she was here.

"Oh."

Nion stepped into the room, glancing at some information saved to her pad. "This is the meat distributor of this region, correct?"

Gumeel was quite sure that this woman already knew the answer to that but she went along and nodded her head anyway. "Yes, this is."

Nion's jet black eyes motioned around the room temporarily before she resumed speaking. She saw that there had been some little pieces of leftover chopped meat on the back counter, but the counter up ahead had stacks of food that hadn't been touched yet. Right from the start, Nion could tell that something was extremely amiss. "And as for miss Gine and the young juvenile: Kakarot?"

Gumeel's only response was that of a sharp gasp. She considered telling the woman a little white lie- that they were on break - though she knew that Nion would see right through that. Hell, she was asking questions she already knew the answer to in the first place, so why lie to begin with? Gumeel wiped some minor sweat from her brow and sighed. "They've been AWOL for a while now," Gumeel answered the woman. "Gine went missing for some time before her better half found her body dead on some other planet."

"And the juvenile?" Nion prodded.

Gumeel shrugged her shoulders, having no idea. "He came back some time ago, asking where his mother is. After I told him the news, he just went quiet, before he suddenly got a call to head out."

Nion blinked at her a handful of times before speaking again. _A call to head_  out? As far as Nion was concerned, that meant only one thing. "So you, fully aware of the fact that the juvenile was attending assignments as an unofficial combatant, didn't come to report any of this sooner?"

Gumeel swallowed down on her saliva hard. Given that she had been here the entire time, witnessing everything transpire as they did, meant that she ultimately had to take responsibility. And since she didn't come to speak on this as soon as possible, also meant that it was possible she'd be in some trouble. "I thought everything would eventually smoothen out. Besides, I didn't think he was heading off on some mission, I thought that he was maybe working in another distribution on some other town."

"Well, you thought wrong. Come with me. Bring the child, too."

Gumeel had an extremely bad feeling down in the pit of her stomach. If things were out of order, then it'd be apart of her job to report things but she's been keeping everything under wraps for so long now. The working Saiyan wasn't able to think of anything else but the possible punishments that she may receive.

* * *

King Vegeta, deciding to hear things out, let Nion spit out the facts of everything that took place all the while Gumeel had explained her side of the story; from Kakarot's minor incident to him eventually taking off on worlds that he wasn't personally assigned to.

Nion had a straight, blank face, and Gumeel had one of worry and fear. Hell, King Vegeta realized the extreme anxiety exuding from the chubby female by how tight Elery was being held in her mother's arms. The young child looked on, eyes wide, and full of confusion.

After hearing everything out, King Vegeta remained silent for a brief moment before coming to his own verdict.

"With all that's been said, the best course of action is to simply move more employees to the area. You last had two working in the meat distributor, so now I want four."

"So we only need two more," Gumeel pointed out. Elery had been a great help for her and it'd only be inevitable that she'd be even much greater as she continued to get older. But King Vegeta didn't see it that way.

"No, three," King Vegeta specified. "This young child, while capable of working in your field, can be of use to us for other means now."

 _Uh_  oh. She knew exactly what her king was getting at and Gumeel was no big fan of it. He'd love to have her daughter be trained into being a chef or an engineer, maybe even a scientist...something else. Not a fighter. "And...w-what might that be?" Though she was mostly sure what he already meant, Gumeel had a small glimmer of hope that he was referring to something else, anything other than being a combatant.

Vegeta's eyes narrowed. "You know precisely what it is that I'm referring to." He then stood up from his throne. "Take this as punishment for doing what you should have done long ago. Instead of physically tormenting you or your daughter, it's best that she be taken away, to see if she can live up to the expectations of a common warrior." Vegeta, over the years, had come to realize how soft some of his own people are. Seeing his father carry out punishments by not killing, but taking away things or people dear to them, would be far worse than a consequence of torture or death.

"B-Bu-"

"No buts!" Vegeta boomed. Gumeel, as she started to shake at the knees, started to have tears fall down her face. King Vegeta completely disregarded this and waved his hand. "You're dismissed."

Before Gumeel had even turned around, there was a Saiyan in the line that had stepped directly in front of her. Once she met with him face to face, her mouth grew wide. She knew what was going to happen next. She mouthed  _please_ , but begging wasn't going to help her in this situation. From the very moment Elery had been taken from her arms, Gumeel started to sob like a child.

"You...you can't…"

Nion was right there, witnessing all take place, rather unmoved about Gumeel's hysterical attachment to her child. She looked over to the King and spoke. "Your majesty, keep in mind that she also mentioned that her child had been helping with her job for some time now. Despite being younger than the average infiltration baby, she is more than capable enough of conquering a world on her own."

"But what about the Galactic Patrol!?" Gumeel bellowed.

"Silence!" King Vegeta demanded. His words were final and her continuous objections were truly starting to get on his last nerve. "Utter one more word and I'll have your tongue!" He then pointed his head directly at the door. "Like I said,  **YOU'RE DISMISSED**!"

Gumeel, feeling utterly humiliated, buried her face into the palms of her hands as she ran out the throne room with her tail lashing side to side, crying her eyes out. Just as she was getting the joy of her life with the company of her child, it all just had to be stripped away. Any other Saiyan was happy with their life by life threatening battles and hearty meals but why couldn't others like her be happy in their own way? There was no light at the end of the tunnel until she gave birth to Elery. Gumeel couldn't even spend an entire year with her daughter before she got taken away, and she really didn't do anything wrong!

Life was just far too unfair at times.

King Vegeta sat down. "Find a suitable planet for her to conquer. Make sure she arrives there on the day of the full moon."

"And the Galactic Patrol?" Nion inquired.

King Vegeta shrugged his shoulders. "If she makes it, she makes it. If not, then we have one less weakling to concern ourselves over."

"And what of the situation on Planet Zoon?" a subordinate asked.

King Vegeta took in a deep breath and sighed. He had a feeling things wouldn't work out, but he just hoped that they did. If there was anything he hated, it was reporting disappointing news to anyone deemed his superior. "Contact Freeza as soon as possible. Let's just get this over with."

For some reason, King Vegeta just had a feeling that Freeza's business with the inhabitants of Planet Zoon would fall through.

* * *

" _And as soon as they accumulated all the techniques and information required to become proper combatants, they stabbed my men in the backs; attacked them while they were resting their heads. Because of this, one of my best men - Zorn - lost his life. My soldiers did everything in their power to make them comply but the people of Planet Zoon made up their minds as an entire race to strike on them, which left them no other choice but to dispose of the treacherous trainees."_

Freeza listened in on every word that came from the King's mouth as he explained the events that took place, which was merely word from one of Vegeta's men. It wasn't like Vegeta happened to be physically there, so for all Freeza knew, everything being told to him was just conjured up as a mere lie so that possible competition within the Freeza Force would be eliminated. The son of Cold, as usual, acted pococurante, though this was a mere act he put on display. He couldn't truly let any bottom feeding Saiyan how he was really feeling. Freeza sipped in small amounts of air, to retain a cool head. He hated when matters did not go the way that he had mentally planned out.

"If such was predetermined to happen, then it was their fate to die to begin with. I understand that your kind isn't all that fond of me, but with you Saiyans, there is a certain respect. You know when the cards are stacked against you, so using what little intelligence that you have to make the best decision in folding. Besides, what gain could I remotely ever accumulate from a group of people that were to ever plan on back stabbing me in the first place?"

" _Very good point,"_ Vegeta agreed.

"I want you to think about this, really," Freeza took in another breath. "Imagine if these people did complete their training; under this hypothetical scenario, they would then eventually be established to truly be apart of the Freeza Force. They, like your people, would get all the benefits that come with working for me: advanced armor, artillery, scouters...even food if they required such. If they were to really be set like you, then they'd realize that I am the one who is truly in power here. At this point, you Saiyans would be like an ant standing by the molehill that I live in. They'll stomp over you and head right for me, to team up and try to take me out. Treachery is bad for business."

" _I couldn't have said it better myself."_ Vegeta cleared his throat. " _If it's any consolation, Lord Freeza, I deeply apologize that things did not go as you desired. If there is any other possible way that we can make it up to you, then let me know as soon as possible._ "

Freeza chuckled softly. "Oh, no, please do not fret over this minor inconvenience. Carry on with your affairs as usual."

" _Yes, my lord."_

**Pip**

Freeza removed his scouter from his left eye and clutched it tightly, veins popping up all around his face. "DAMN IT ALL!"

The device broke into hundreds of pieces. Shards of glass dropped to the floor, but most of them had penetrated the hands of the tyrant, resulting in a bit of blood dripping to the floor.  _So it seems that I have no other choice but to resort to the most gradual plan of all. The loyalty of these Saiyans truly is questionable but they have yet to show signs of possible treason. But still, I know something is up; King Vegeta isn't any mere simpleminded brute. He can think ahead, otherwise he wouldn't be a King._

Just then, the automatic doors from behind had slid open. Freeza needed not to even look in the reflection of the giant glass window ahead of him to realize that it was his most promising subordinate: Raditz. Alongside him was Abo and Kado.

"Planet Stink has been taken care of without much issure, sire."

Freeza smiled delightfully. The amount of money he'd get from selling Planet Stink would perfectly make up for the amount that he invested in to groom those idiotic Zoonians. "Nice and clean it was, I assume?"

"Indeed," Abo confirmed. "Piece of cake, my lord."

"Good." Freeza snapped his fingers. "Abo, Kado, you two may be dismissed. Once Beriblu comes back, I'll be sure to call you in to gain your reward."

Raditz remained standing up. Despite being healed from what took place a few weeks ago on Planet Rizen, his body would still twitch every now and then. The resentment he held in his heart due to Abo and Kado's actions hadn't left, but in fact grew. However, Raditz knew better than to act on impulse, especially when Freeza was so close in his personal business.

Though still frustrated, Freeza kept his cool. He tightened the grip on the broken remains of the scouter device so that it went unnoticed. "I have a question."

"Yes?"

"What is your opinion on the Saiyans and their growing power? Their potential is rather out of this world, wouldn't you agree?"

Raditz remained quiet for a moment. He knew that he had to choose his words carefully before answering. If he said yes, would he anger Freeza or please him for stating what he believed to be the truth? If he replied no, then would Freeza be pleased by the answer or take anger in the possibility of being told merely what he could have maybe wanted to hear. "Why?"

"Oh, nothing." Freeza opened the palm in his hand, dropping the scouter - at least what was left of it. "I've just been contemplating now more than ever if I should dispose of them all." He looked over his shoulder. "What do you think?"

Raditz was taken aback by this direct answer. Was Freeza being serious or just showing off his morbid sense of humor? Raditz didn't see any incentive for Freeza to destroy his people, but the boy was far too curious. He cleared his throat before he answered again. "I hate to ask once more, but...why?"

"Simple, really; have you heard of these myths that have verbally been passed down? The potentiality that a Super Saiyan or Super Saiyan God rises from the ashes with enough power to ruin anything and everything in its path? Your kind and I do not have the best relationship, which is why I think that if such myths were true, then they wouldn't hesitate to use this Super Saiyan the very first chance they got to take me down. Trust me, I know them; you Saiyans are inherently opportunistic. I hate to admit that they're more like me than I tend to give them credit for and I know myself better than even my own father does."

"Well, of course not!" Raditz answered loudly. The kid, since he was young, worked his butt off fighting. He went from planet to planet, killing in the name of his king and Freeza. Of all the Saiyans that have died because of working for Freeza, with their shown loyalty, Raditz didn't see the reason as to why the Saiyans would truly betray him. "And if there are those that plot on you, then they deserve what's coming to them! I just don't see how anybody would have anything against you to begin with…"

Curious as to why Raditz thought this, Freeza decided to ask the same question Raditz asked: "Why?"

"Because if not for you, then we wouldn't have nearly as much as what we do. We Saiyans are born to fight and you have given us this opportunity. All we have to do in our line of work is what we love, which is also something we happen to be good at! In return, you give us food, money, and anything else that we need. I just can't see it, Lord Freeza. I really can't."

Freeza nodded.  _He could be telling me exactly what I want to hear, though that's hard to believe. He proudly expressed the same thing in less details back on Planet Chew when he fought alongside those ignorant Saiyans. If what he says is the honest truth….then maybe there is loyalty in some Saiyans to begin with; true loyalty._

"The only reason I haven't decided to go off and destroy them yet despite the words shared between your now dead comrades is because of the fact that you've helped me realize that some Saiyans can truly be loyal. If you were to ever betray me, then that just tells me that no Saiyan is capable of any form of loyalty whatsoever." His stare then intensified. "The fate of your own people rest on your shoulders."

Raditz was hesitant to whether or not he should ask the question that had been floating in his mind ever since this conversation kicked off. If he didn't ask now, then the question would be eating at him forever. "So, you're not going to rid of them all?"

Freeza grinned. "No. I do, however, have this contingency plan that is unfolding as we speak. Such is to be sure that the Saiyans never betray me. It's a slow, gradual process, more so than I would like. However, it'll all be worth it in the end. I just hope you don't ruin the fun for me, my most loyal soldier." Freeza turned around and looked out into the deep reaches of space. "You're dismissed."

Raditz bowed before he turned around to take his leave.

While he walked down the corridors of Freeza's gigantic ship, Raditz's mind is just constantly spinning. Was Freeza really thinking about getting rid of the entirety of the Saiyan race? Would he kill them off one by one or just destroy the entire planet? He understood why he killed Dane, Korn, and Jaga, but that was for good reason: they talked about betraying him. The very thought just made Raditz shiver.

"Where are you off to, hedgehog?"

Hearing the voice of Abo and Kado, Raditz grinded his teeth and just kept on walking. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to be enough to get them off his back.

"Hey!" Kado rushed in over at Raditz and stopped the boy in his tracks by pressing his hand over his armored shoulder plate. "You know it isn't polite to walk away from anybody who's talking to you."

Raditz, remembering what took place on Planet Rizen, elbowed Kado in the stomach. This caused the soldier to grunt but he immediately followed that up with a huge fit of laughter. "Under any other circumstances, I'd stomp your face in, kid." Kado then removed his hand from Raditz. "But my brother and I can see that you're starting to become a favorite around here."

"So what good would it do us if we played a little too much with Lord Freeza's new best pet?" Abo chuckled.

The two, while laughing, walked away.

Raditz clenched his shaky fists, scowling under his breath. He disregarded the people that walked toward him, forcing them to maneuver around to get to their destination. Off jump, the long-haired boy was aware of the fact that he was fresh meat and to most people, he was an outcast, simply for being a Saiyan.

This lit a fire in the boy's soul. Death was a thing he didn't take fear in anymore. Death came with something he loved most: battle. And if he survived every fight, he'd only get stronger.  _Thanks, you bastards. Now I've got a point to prove._

* * *

"I told you the brat was gonna love it here."

After reporting in their dozens of conquests that he's taken on over the course of the incessant months that they've been travelling, Turles decided to give his young mentee a nice little break after receiving a great abundance of intergalactic currency. By Turles' personal philosophy, a Saiyan mainly thrives in the art of combat, though he did like to take time off every now and then - have big feasts, drink lots of wine.

Planet Yoyu was a planet in which those that didn't know about it, then they would never find it - one of those worlds in which people with the money could afford a huge break. The Planet traded goods with the Freeza Force so that they could run their entire global vacation planet. All they had to do was give 80% of the money that they earned back to Freeza and they could run business as they pleased. Here were restaurants, inns, suites, hotels, motels, lodges, resorts, floatels, hostels, carnivals, festivals, water parks, tours, rodeos, sport events, and so much more.

There was not a single second in which this planet was not a live environment. It was so loud and colorful outside that the suites and any other stay inn all had to be sound proof with no windows so that the outside light wouldn't perturb those that desired to catch a little break. The only time of peace was when one desired rest, but from the moment they were to step out the room, conversations filled with cheerful yelling, laughter, and maybe a fight every now and then was nothing more than unavoidable.

This was Kakarot's first time on Planet Yoyu. The kid was taken to a restaurant, where he got to try all kinds of exotic meals from various different planets. He and Turles had made an insane surplus of money due to their recent missions, so the older Saiyan took the liberty to splurge. They spent most of their earnings on good food and fine wine. Nothing more and nothing less.

The place was sectioned by walls that were able to slide so those who wished to eat without being seen could do so. It was lit by neon lights to make the atmosphere all the more enjoyable. The only people who even spent time on this planet were those who were rich, so definitely those that were involved with Freeza in some way. Because of this, Turles and Kakarot were watched closely. Very rare was it that Saiyans spent their time here.

Turles chuckled at the waitress who spoke to him. The lady was a green skinned lady with square ears and a tiny nose and piercings all over her body. Her hair was insanely long and she dressed rather provocatively. While he'd look every now and then, he wasn't all too focused on sexual pleasure. "This is the boy's first time."

"Well, I certainly hope to see his face a lot more...especially if he turns out looking just like you."

Turles just chuckled. "Sure thing."

Kakarot swallowed down the meat off a chicken bone with one simple bite and placed the bone right on his plate as he grabbed at the seafood, stuffing it all in his mouth. Many would find the sight disgusting, but Turles and the waitress took humor in this. This planet was all about fun and seeing others have fun brought pleasure to those that came to Planet Yoyu.

"Do you wish for me put in a word for a suite, floatel, or any of the likes? By the time you finish your meals, then your rooms will be ready."

Turles nodded his head. "Sure thing. Come back and let me know when it's ready."

"Of course." The waitress turned around and walked off.

Turles sat back in his chair and sipped on his purple wine. Kakarot's eye caught the color of the enticing liquid and the boy quickly grew curious. "What is that?"

"Oh, this?" Turles moved the wine glass in his hand, twirling it around a bit. By doing so he almost placed Kakarot in a hypnotic state, simply for observing the simple beauty of his drink. "This is the most pulchritudinous, lavish, toothsome, appetizing drink in the entire galaxy - perhaps the universe even. Would you like a taste?"

Kakarot nodded his head frantically. Every meal that was unfamiliar to him on the menu was every meal that Kakarot had taken without hesitation. He loved water as well as juice, but he noticed Turles smiling every single time he took a sip of that drink. If wine had brought a smile to Turles' face everytime he had a try, then Kakarot just had to try it for himself. As Turles reached his hands out to give Kakarot the drink, the young child jacked it out his hand. "Gimme!"

Turles frowned.  _He's not even going to savor his drink._

Kakarot took one big gulp and downed the remaining wine that was left in the glass. After he set said glass down, the kid's entire body shuddered. It  _wow_ feeling enveloped his body, instantly having him fall in love with wine right then and there.

"Amazing isn't it?"

"Mhm!" Kakarot's droat was all moist and the feeling of the wine flushing down all the food he stuffed down his belly was the most pleasing sensation he had every felt all his life - despite only still being a child.

"Next time, don't just down it all," Turles advised. "Learn to be in the moment and appreciate the delectable taste that such a promising beverage possesses."

Kakarot completely ignored Turles' words and followed up by changing the topic. "Mister Turles, what's wrong with the Saiyans?" This question had been on his mind for some time now and he had to know. What was Turles' plight with them?

 _Heh, I never thought you'd ask._ Turles would intentionally talk down on the Saiyans here and there, just so that Kakarot would inevitably ask what's his bout with them. This was where he'd ultimately be able to plant the seed in Kakarot's mind in which would result in being the catalyst to the young boy remaining forever loyal to him.

"You see…" Turles looked around a bit before he continued. People were so focused in their own little worlds that chances were that they wouldn't come to notice the words he shared. But even still, he had to be careful. He grabbed the wall that was just aside of him and slid across to the very end to where he and Kakarot couldn't be seen. "I don't have a problem with the Saiyans, but I have a problem with how they run things as a society."

Kakarot didn't say a word and just remained quiet and listened so that he could truly grasp where Turles was coming from.

"This class system that they have is all balderdash." Turles raised four fingers. "There are lower-class Saiyans, low-class Saiyans, mid-class Saiyans, and the elites." He then scoffed. "I used to believe in it, but I realized that all the discriminating system does is hold us Saiyans back. We'll never be able to take back our pride as a race as long as the class system remains and as long as Freeza rules over us, we'll get absolutely nowhere in the universe. That's why I put so much focus on us getting strong."

"So we can take over?"

Turles snapped his fingers. "Bingo! For example, your power-level is just over one thousand while I have a battle power of 3,500. We're nowhere near as strong as the King nor his son, which is fine. Conquering our people isn't the main goal - it's Freeza. We need to reach a certain power in which we'll be unstoppable when we decide to take over and we so by doing our best to stay off the grid. We take down Freeza and get ahold of his empire, then everything else just falls into our hands like water on a rainy day." If there was anything Turles was good it, it was remaining unnoticed. Before, he had a team of comrades that he took great joy fighting alongisde, though after their deaths, he everything changed. When asked about their whereabouts, Turles lied, saying that his comrades were just out and waiting for him to report back with armor, food, and other necessities. As far as anyone who kept track of him were concerned, all the missions that Turles completed were done by him and the other four men that he once worked with, though they were dead. Now it was just him and the young Kakarot.

"We'll eventually become strong enough to start having people carrying out jobs for us so that we can pull the strings necessary in the dark. With heat off us, we will be able to maneuver in which ever way that'll ultimately benefit us and our cause." Turles then leaned over the table to whisper. "We break down Freeza's organization, bit by bit, so when they're weak, we're ready for attack. We take Freeza's place, and we have it all. And once we're in power, we rearrange Planet Vegeta and make it the way it's supposed to be."

"And we become Super Saiyans!?"

Turles scoffed and shook his head. He didn't know how many times he had to tell Kakarot at this point that there were no such thing as a Super Saiyan. The boy hears of this once and thinks of it to be true. "No, kid, but don't worry. We don't need to be Super Saiyans in order to have ultimate power." He grinned as he pulled out a senzu. "With these, we'll be unstoppable."

The way Turles had broke everything down to Kakarot was nothing short of amazing. This man was as opportunistic as they came and the only thing on Kakarot's mind was the countless ventures that'd they face through their path to power.

_It was the perfect plan._

* * *

As soon as King Vegeta got the life support signal coming from his son's assigned pod, he waited for his boy to touchdown, alongside Kuni by the landing site of Planet Vegeta. Those around the King had all stopped working momentarily and got directly on their knees, bowing before him as a sign of respect.

As soon as Prince Vegeta stepped out of the pod, King Vegeta and many others all got to see the insane battle damage At that point everyone just stopped what they were doing right then and there and got on their knees to pay respects to the Prince and the King, whom of both unacknowledged their citizens as they walked past them.

"So, how did the mission go?"

Vegeta IV didn't like it for the most part but the nice view he got to see just before he left made up for it all. By dragging out the remaining people of Planet Zame and having them all burn to death, the prince had basically managed to kill two birds as they all burned alive. The trip was rather lengthy but the power boost he got in return was surely worth it.

"Well, I'm here, aren't I?"

King Vegeta hummed a bit and continued to walk ahead. Very seldom it was that he let anyone run a smart mouth with him, though his son was a fine exception.

"You initiated your life support sequence," Kuni reminded Vegeta. "While the mission was complete, we could only imagine the trouble that you went through to get it done."  _Not to mention, his apparel is in shreds._ Vegeta had cracks on his armor, with pieces missing and his pants were torn in shreds.

Prince Vegeta crossed his arms and scoffed. "Regardless of what transpired, I completed the mission and got to live another day. That's all that matters, isn't it?"

"Very true," King Vegeta agreed.

**PIP**

King Vegeta grabbed a scouter from inside his armor and pulled it out. He clicked a button prior to placing it near his ear so that he could answer. "Yes?"

"King Vegeta, Bardock and Nappa have returned to the throne room."

This caused the man to furrow a brow.  _What's the point of them reporting to me if they've already told me everything I needed to know?_ Perhaps it was Bardock and Nappa showing up as a sign of respect, being that they were absolutely fine with reporting to his face no matter what. Besides, if they were to retell their story again, it'd give the King an opportunity to try and poke holes in their reiterated stories. If everything matched up perfectly fine, then he'd come to the realization that they were the real deal. "I'll be on my way." He cut the reception.

"Got business to attend to, huh, father?"

Vegeta nodded. "Son, whenever you can, have your battle power recorded so that we have an idea of just how much stronger you've gotten. Before you tend to the palace, change."

"Right."

Kuni and Vegeta IV watched as the king walked off to tend to business. The prince waited until his father was out of ear shot before he spoke to Kuni.

"I have to admit...you were right after all."

Kuni's eyes quickly veered off to the side of Vegeta's face. The young prince looked on with a hardened stare, showing that it was taking a lot for him to even just get there to admit such.  _Did I hear him correctly?_ "Right about what?" Of course she already knew what he was referring to, but she wanted to hear everything come from the horse's mouth.

"About everything," Vegeta specified. "From every little talk we had up until now. On the way back home I had a lot of time to think to myself." He then looked at her. "Without your help, I wouldn't be as far as I am right now. And it just may be thanks to you that I become a Super Saiyan."

 _Wow._ That was really all she could think. Not in a million years did Kuni expect Vegeta to just come out and verbally admit her being right about things from the jump. If there was one thing Kuni knew about the Saiyans, it's that they were a hardheaded race; very prideful. "Well, I know."

"But I still don't believe in us Saiyans being only made for battle. Underestimating one's power is the downfall of many and it goes the very same with undermining a person's intelligence - much more the intellect of an entire race."

Kuni scoffed with a stifled chuckle. "Sure thing, prince."

Vegeta started to lift himself up into the sky. "Follow me."

Kuni just watched as Vegeta elevated more and more, though she didn't do as much as move a single muscle. Once Vegeta was a good 15 yards in the air, he looked down with an expression of confusion. "You coming or not?"

Kuni couldn't help but realize how unprofessional Vegeta was acting. Did he have something up his sleeve or was it something of great importance? Because of wondering what was going on through his mind, Kuni's curiosity grew. Slowly, Kuni levitated off the ground and she followed the prince. The higher that they flew, the more the humidity of Planet Vegeta decreased and the breezier that it became. Very rare did Kuni fly but when she did, she loved the cool skin penetrating her face every other second.

Kuni followed Vegeta to the highest point of the Saiyan palace and stood on top the roof.

The two got to see a beautiful sight of Planet Vegeta from up high. They saw as people went on working, whether it be moving carts, tinkering with machines, or just interacting socially, it was nothing short of amazing.

"To think that a race of warriors could look so civilized," Kuni commented.

Vegeta looked on with his chin up, taking in a deep bit of breath. "One day, this world will be mine, once I become King."

Kuni looked to the boy. Seeing him grow and become King was something she simply couldn't picture at this moment, despite knowing how ineluctable his day of promotion was. "I'll go AWOL once that happens."

Though she said so in a dry manner, Vegeta had easily caught onto her making a simple joke. This elicited a minor chuckle out of him, which surprised Kuni, simply because she didn't expect him to take such a comment as lightly as he did.

"Look down right there."

Kuni's eyes watched out for where he pointed his finger at a female soldier throwing punches and kicks at a young kid. Kuni had to look hard and squint her eyes so that she could decipher who it was. While it took a great bit of effort, she was able to make out who it was. "That's Selypa and her child." Kuni then tilted her head.  _But isn't it too soon to have her kid out the nursing capsule? What is she up to?_ "What about her?"

"This is what all Saiyans should be doing. Fighting is what makes any warrior, but training is what makes a real Saiyan warrior." His eyes motioned back to Kuni. "I didn't realize this until I did my training sessions with the Super Saibaimen. Only through combat  _ **AND**_  training will a true Saiyan be able to live up to his best potential. And for her to instill the concept of training into her child while it's young is nothing short of sublime. Just because that child is training, he'll be one of the best warriors this planet has to lay its eyes upon."

Kuni, though hearing every word that came out the Saiyan's mouth, couldn't help but let another fly through the other ear. There was a question that she'd been wondering for some great time now, though she didn't know when the best time to ask would be. She figured that now would be the best time.

"Vegeta…?"

"What?"

"Once you do become King, will there be a queen?"

The prince immediately shook his head. "We Saiyans only reproduce for reproductive reasons. The position of King is all that matters in this world. There's nothing a woman can do to elevate a King beside provide offspring."

"But I've done a great deal for you and your father instead of bearing children," Kuni retorted.

Vegeta zipped his lips and didn't respond with a single word.  _Right she was, yet again._

Vegeta's lips slowly curled into that of a smug smile. "Touche. Maybe bearing my children will help even more."

Kuni's eyes bulged in response. Prince Vegeta, while smiling, soon noticed the silence and looked back to her. "I was joking..."

Kuni snickered and nudged the boy on the shoulder. "I know...prince."

_Since when did he have a tolerance of jokes?_

She must have been rubbing off on him.

* * *

Was it normal to miss a world that you barely remember? Just a certain smell or action of another person brings back memories that you couldn't even dream of conjuring up yourself no matter how hard you tried. Regardless of what may have happened during that short period of time, you can't help but feel homesick.

One child, far away from home, sure could resonate with that feeling.

At a very young age, Tarble was neglected by his own family and sent off to a civilized planet, where he was expected to spend the rest of his days due to not apparently having a talent for battle. After the first few weeks of trying to survive on his own, running into criminals and bullies, the boy eventually had been taken in by a kind family.

Planet Tech Tech was a world that had good and bad. Good outweighed the bad on the planet but the baddies all stuck out like a sore thumb. The planet had a lot of potential, but those with eveil intentions and aspirations did a great deal of damage by causing great pollution in the world, which was a great contributor to climate problems. Those in bio-technology did a bit too much exploring, creating dangerous, oversized specimens that would hurt the average civillian. Tarble was yet to come across these creatures but he knew that it was only a matter of time. Just thinking about all the fighting that he'd do as he grows up on this world made him think of his warrior race back home.

At school, Tarble didn't associate much with the other kids, unless they wanted a favor of him that required the boy to take physical action; he hated altercation though. But still, he didn't want to be on anyone's bad side.

But that didn't deter one person from being his friend.

"Hey, Tarble!"

A young short girl by the name of Gure ran up behind Tarble as he stood in the middle of the school yard during recess. He looked up at the heavy storms that were beginning to start. Rain was now a common occurrence on this planet.

Upon hearing his name called, Tarble turned around to face Gure. A big smile came over his face as he grabbed her by the hand. They didn't have classes together but recess was the only time in which they got to see one another. "Gure!"

If anyone was able to lighten his mood, it was her.

"I didn't see you by the bags today. What's wrong?"

Tarble just shook his head.

But Gure wasn't buying it. She learned him quick; whenever Tarble wasn't feeling good, he'd always remove himself from the crowd and stand on his own, like a loner. "Tarble…"

The kid knew his front wasn't going to last at all so it didn't take much for him to fold. "I...I-I kind of miss home…"

Tarble never spoke about home. Whenever Gure or somebody else would ask, he'd completely shut them down. Gure was his best friend and he didn't even dare bother in filling her in on his experiences back home. Despite being so young back then, he had a vivid memory of spending time with his brother and whatever little time he had with his father, as well as older strangers that tried to train him into a warrior-something he was eventually established to not be.

"Do you want to go back home?"

"Yeah," Tarble answered her. "But I don't think I'll ever be accepted there." The boy looked down at the ground. "I was deemed unworthy; a prince of a warrior race not showing the pride necessary to be deemed a soldier. They sent me away out of embarassment."

Gure grabbed Tarble's shoulder and looked him in the eye. "But that doesn't matter, Tarble. You have to appreciate those who really do care. Family isn't about blood, but the people you love and the people who love you."

Tarble smiled. "You're right, Gure." The kid wiped his eyes before they got teary. "I'm getting worried over nothing."

"One day, maybe there will be a sign in which home is calling back to you." She then moved behind him and hopped on the boy's shoulders. "But as far as I'm concerned,  _this is your home. The Raudo are your people."_

Tarble grabbed at Gure's legs so that she wouldn't fall as they played. The two kids were tighter than super magnets. He didn't know how he'd fit in here if it weren't for Gure.

She was family.

But deep down, he did hope that his real family would come around for him.

After all, he did miss his big brother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now we'll finally get a big time skip. With the end of the Ambitions Arc, we will have a big jump that'll bring us into the next.
> 
> Hope you've enjoyed the story thus far.


	23. Wishful Thinking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time passes; Kakarot discovers a sorcery on Earth that Turles doesn't give the time of day; they start their quest for intergalactic takeover

**Dragon Ball Governed**

**Chapter 23**

**"Wishful Thinking"**

* * *

11 years.

It had been 11 years since the Earthlings had to endure the monstrosity that the two Saiyan murderous brought. A lot of time had passed since then, though 11 years in the long run isn't all that much when it comes to the big picture of matters. The millions of lives lost caused an enormous ripple effect, one that hadn't stopped to this day; the economy had plundered, which resulted in more poor people, and safety procedures had elevated to an all time high. There wasn't a single street one can pass by without seeing a figure of authority. Despite that, unity amongst people of all different kinds had been flourishing. Within a few more years, everything would begin to start being normal again.

Regardless, those who tried to forget simply couldn't. Everyday going out in the world, the aftermath of the tragedy was always there in different forms: rebuilding or struggle.

And for those that remained inside, they still couldn't get over it.

Thanks to the media.

On television, a blue anthropomorphic dog was seen seated at his desk with his glasses hanging low. The stressful years had taken its toll on him since his natural blue fur could be seen with obvious greying spots. Many hated him for his lack of success in protecting the world, though many also respected him for his resolve in putting the pieces back together. He did what he could and that was all that mattered in the eyes of most.

"This day shouldn't be given any glorifying introduction," the king of Earth started off. "We know the tragedy that bestowed itself upon us and you all know that I and my men are doing their best to keep on forward. Every year since then, we've been able to come with some good news. Last year we've managed to employ new jobs despite the heightened amount of people gone into poverty. This year, we're starting DAASA; Defending Aeronautics and Space Administration. We will be keeping track of what comes in and out on the planet as we try to learn how to make ships and satellites capable of surviving out in space long enough to keep watch over us."

The television had been shut off.

Katayude tossed the remote over on the soft leather couch in the living room. On any other day, when not fishing or cooking, he'd be watching television, but today was no casual one. He was dressed in an all black stroller suit with notch lapels, and a dark red tie to match. With the living room now totally silent, he placed his hands under his baggy eyes and just sighed.

"We all knew this day was coming, son."

Katayude looked through the reflection of the black screen of the television to see it was Dr. Briefs. The man usually lived right nearby on the same island in his capsule corp home, though today was a special occasion. Katayude already knew it was the scientist by his voice, though he had to see him. Instead of Dr. Briefs being in his usual white lab coat and two button T-shirt, he was also dressed in a suit. Like Katayude, Dr. Briefs wore an all black zoot suit with a fedora.

He wasn't one for fashion. Being without Panchy really made him stick out like a sore thumb when it came to his choice of clothes.

"Yeah," Katayude turned around. "I just didn't expect him to pass so soon. I figured that he had another decade at the least."

Dr. Briefs nodded his head as he came from a place of understanding. He didn't expect Omori to pass away so soon either but being the elder man that he was, experience taught him that life came with all kinds of surprises. "Yeah, me too." Briefs approached Katayude from behind to give the man a reassuring pat on the back. "Come on, let's go. They're about to bury him."

Just outside, with Omori's tombstone directly next to his late wife's, everyone that had held him dear surrounded him.

Katayude came to greatly respect the man after they conversated with one another for the very first time. Upon having a heart to heart about the struggles he's endured after his wife's death, Katayude couldn't help but be sympathetic toward him. When together, the two would often fish and thanks to Omori, he learned a great deal about science. He was somewhat like a father figure to him. He respected Tokunoshin Omori so much that he even had his four subordinates of the police force, Aosa, Hiiki, Hondawara, and Mozuku.

Aosa left tulips on the tombstone as he spends a lot of his hobby time growing such. Hijiki left a written calligraphy letter dedicated to the old man. Hondawara left origami figures there and Tagomoro Katayude left tie bears on the tombstone as well.

Another man there, Dr. Briefs, also very much appreciated having Omori around as company. Many times, Dr. Briefs found it extremely hard to work together with any other scientist since the majority were far below him in intelligence. He only saw himself working with his daughter, but once he and Omori began to work on projects together, they just began clicking. They helped one another see things differently. It was just unfortunate that it took the alien invasion to bring them two together. He wished that they had met under different circumstances. He left Omori a pack of cigarettes on his tombstone; an inside joke between them two.

Tights just knew she had to be there. She had went through a lot and faced danger more than once alongside Omori and the two always came out together on top, with the help of Jako, an elite intergalactic policeman. Them growing an uncle and niece type of bond was just ineluctable. That was exactly how Bulma looked at him as well. Bulma left him a golden clock while Tights had roses and a rocket to boot.

And speaking of Jako, the man had took a break off duty to attend this ceremony as well. Despite his people doing memorials and burials very differently, Jako uncharacteristically bit his tongue and respected the dead man that was Tokunoshin Omori.

"Rest in peace, old timer. Now he can happily live in the otherworld with his wife."

Bulma walked up to the tombstone and crouched down. She kissed the palm of her hand, which she then used to touch it. Over these past 11 years, the girl had officially become a young woman, now sitting directly at 21 years old. She wore a dark violet Qipao dress that stopped just a bit before her knees. It was tight and revealed her nice curvaceous figure. Her purple hair was down to her very shoulders and in curls as she wore golden hoop earrings and red lipstick with a touch of mascara.

She was drop dead gorgeous.

After standing back up on her two feet in her purple high-heels, she turned around to face everyone who dressed rather elegantly to attend this occasion. "Everyone, I have to let you know that this is going to be good-bye...at least for a little bit."

This caused everyone to tilt their heads like confused dogs. What did she mean "good-bye"? After spending 11 years on the island, did Bulma finally decide to leave the nest? Everyone with the exception of her father didn't understand the sudden announcement. And today of all days.

"And just what are you up to?" Jako stepped up and asked.

Bulma dug inside the purse that she had been carrying the entire morning. She then proceeded to pull out two orange balls, both with a different number of stars on them. "As some of you know, I found this in the attic long ago." Bulma then reeled in one of the balls to get a close look at the shiny orb. "I did some research and apparently these things can grant wishes."

"You're kidding!" Jako exclaimed.

Bulma shook her head. "No. Legend says that I need all seven gathered around together before I say the password needed to summon the wish-granting dragon. I have 2 but just need the other five."

"Where are they?" Tights asked.

"Scattered," Bulma answered her older sister. "All over the world." The purple haired woman then smirked. "Good thing I have a Dragon Ball tracker."

Katayude and his associates were all left aghast. They couldn't fathom how something so mystical could actually be real - and on their world of all places.

"It sounds like a legend to me," Katayude voiced out. He then took off his glasses and looked at her with a dead expressionless look. "Are you serious about scouting the entire world just to find these things?"

Bulma nodded her head. "Dead serious."

As much as Katayude would prefer to stay there and mourn the loss of a great friend, he knew that he'd be no good man if he just let some young female go off by herself out in the world. He knew of the many dangers and chances are, Bulma wouldn't last a week out on her own doing free travel. "Then I'm going with. You're going to need somebody to protect you along the way."

"Well, why can't Jako be the one to go, too?" Tights suggested as she patted her old friend on the back.

Jako laughed in a weird manner as he scratched his head. As much as he liked Bulma, he couldn't. "I already got lectured pretty badly the last time I was on this planet for an extended period of time. If I do that again, I might get fired."

"Are you serious?" Tights asked.

Jako confirmed so by moving his head.

"When will you be ready to go?" Katayude asked.

"Right now," Bulma told him. She knew that time was of the essence, so the sooner that she got to collecting the Dragon Balls, then the sooner she'd be able to get her wish.

Dr. Briefs was the only one who didn't bother questioning anything. Bulma was a grown woman at this point and she was far beyond intelligent enough to make her own decisions. He walked toward her and gave his youngest a wide hug. "Please be safe, dear."

Bulma reciprocated the sign of affection and hugged her father just as tight as he did her. Tights joined as well to make sure that her sister knew that she also cared. After what felt like 5 minutes, Bulma's father and older sister finally pulled away.

The two looked back for a moment before turning back to her. They just had to know: "What are you going to wish for?"

Bulma fell silent. She initially wanted to keep this a secret as she went off to travel so that she could surprise everyone, but seeing the insane concerned look on Tights' and Briefs' face was something she couldn't resist acquiescing to. She leaned in and whispered so that only they heard her.

"I'm going to wish for mom to come back…"

* * *

Living the life of a hermit had its ups and downs.

A pro was that thoughts and actions could be freely let out and done without having to fret over any outside judgement. Though a con was that the lack of social interaction could genuinely make things a bore, having the single soul wander in their own mind for the majority of the time, despite also sometimes wanting to have other forms of diversion.

Roshi used to live that lifestyle of a hermit, despite having a talking turtle as his companion.

But he wasn't truly alone anymore.

In the livingroom of his home, Roshi sat in a lotus position next to a chabudai table where there were seven different meals cooked. Sushi, eggs, and a glass of water, for everyone.

Not a single day passed by that Roshi didn't think of the horrible night in which his past friends and rivals had been killed right before him. The old man had went through survivor's guilt before, but not to such an extreme magnitude. Regardless, he knew the only best solution for himself would be to move on and that's what he tried to do.

He also swore that he'd look after the students of those who had fallen.

So he's had some company for some time; on and off to be exact.

Three young boys that were students of Orin. After the disappearance of their master for what felt like days, everyone in the school had grown worried. Many left but only three stayed and remained loyal: Krillin, Kaston, and Liban. Kaston and Liban didn't necessarily take a liking to Krillin while at the temple, but after sticking around for a while under Roshi, they set aside their differences and got along before Roshi came ahead to take them in. The trio all had bald heads and six incensed burns on their foreheads. One was tall and lanky looking while the other was short and chubby. Krillin himself was just a midget, though he wasn't to be underestimated in combat.

Two were from Tsuru and his brother Tao: Chaotzu and Tien-Shinhan. At very young ages, they were being trained to be brutal fighters. They were learning to manipulate ki before their masters passed. Roshi picked up where they left off and allowed them to excel. Chaotzu and Tien were inseparable. Wherever Tien went or whatever he did, Chaotzu had to go and do it, too. They had an extreme work ethic, working and training hard day in and out whenever requested. Roshi was fond of their relationship and even encouraged it, for some day their bond could come in handy during any given situation.

And last but not least, the only female of the group. She always kept her jet-black hair in a bun and never went a day without wearing her master's gi, despite having trained with the likes of Karin and even Kami. Tien took combat seriously, but she took it to an entirely different level. Whenever she wasn't resting, eating, or using the bathroom, she was either training or meditating. Roshi had made attempts at telling her that it's okay to take a break once in a while though she wouldn't listen. After her father's death, fighting was all that she knew. She could be rather hard-headed, just like Gyumao. But her fiery spirit and dedication in the Martial Arts would be her key to success.

Chi-Chi was her name.

All seven had begun training with Roshi at different stages of their lives; Tien was nine years old when he was taken in. Krillin and his orin peers were all six. Chi-Chi was five and Chaotzu, four. The first few year and a half they learned everything they needed to from Muten Roshi, until they had then been brought to Karin. All of them trained for months at a time before being sent to Kami. Luckily for them, they never had a run into with the two Saiyans when they came to collect. All of them had just recently come home with Roshi after all this time.

It was just like old times with them sitting around and eating. They were a real family.

Chi-Chi was the first to finish her meal, as well as her cup of water. Subsequent to putting the drink down, her eyes motioned directly over to Roshi. "Master…"

Roshi was in the midst of placing some sushi in his mouth with chopsticks as he paused to look over to her. "Hm?"

Chi-Chi had asked this question once before, though when she was very little. Back then she didn't quite get what he meant until she continued to train and progress at exponential rates. After having completed training amongst the divine creatures of this world, she just had to know.

"Do you think I can take on the people that have killed my father now?"

Everyone stopped eating and fell silent. This was a question that they all had asked themselves as well, though they never bothered to ask. But of course, Chi-Chi had to be the brave one.

Tien sipped on a glass of water before chipping in. "That's a good question to ask now. We've bested the best of this world, master. Do you think that we're on their level now?" Whether it was yes or no, Tien was willing to accept it for what it was. Roshi was the only one who truly got to witness their power, so if there was any person to ask at the current moment, it'd be him.

The elder Martial Artist slowly put down his last piece of sushi and just grabbed at his glass of ice-cold water. Everyone was staring at him hard. They were expecting him to cough something up, so he figured why not. But doing this would have to make Roshi think about the horrible energies that manifested from the two of them that day and compare that to the current powers of his pupils. Just thinking about it made him want to puke but he'd do so for his students if they really wanted to know.

Chi-Chi and the others were all patient. Liban continued eating as he also awaited an answer.

Finally, he opened his eyes after 2 minutes of keeping them closed so that he could focus. He took one second to look at each of them before he opened his mouth to respond to Chi-Chi's question. "No." He then grabbed at his last piece of sushi and began munching on it.

Chi-Chi's brow had furrowed. Was that really it? No? After all that time of thinking about it, that was all he had to say? "And that's all?" Chi-Chi asked him. "We've endured brutal sessions of training since we were little. We've broken barriers that none other could even imagine to accomplish. We're basically gods amongst men and all you can say is no?"

"They're too strong.'

Chi-Chi had to hold back a growl. "They have power, so what? We have both power AND technique. You've told us that's what they lack, right? Technique? We have both. Both trumps one. And even if they are strong, working together, we could take em!"

Roshi could see that his student's words were beginning to get to the others as well. Tien admired Chi-Chi for how strong-willed she was and the others greatly admired her as well. If there was anybody to take the first step into anything without hesitation, it was Chi-Chi.

"With all due respect," Tien started, "I see where you're coming from, but if Muten Roshi says that we aren't ready, then we aren't ready to take them. He has experience, knowledge, and wisdom over all us combined. Master's words aren't to be taken lightly."

Chi-Chi closed her mouth and just remained quiet. While she wanted to act out on anger, doing such would be against the training that Kami had put her through. She was far more a hot-head than anyone else. Controlling not only your movements but emotions is what made one a true Martial Artist. Chi-Chi, despite having completed various forms of training, still had to learn.

She stood on her two feet and walked up the stairs to go sleep on one of the seven cots in a single room.

After everyone else was finished eating, they all did the same.

But sleep was the last thing on her mind. Chi-Chi, subsequent to laying down, had closed her eyes and meditated for two hours straight. Though her mind was clear, the young woman couldn't help but continuously thinking about fighting those that took her only last relative at a small age.

Lying right by the window of the room, her eyes wandered off to the bright half-moon on the planet. It was indeed a very lovely sight and made her clear skin sparkle like a sun shining on silver chains.

And much to her dismay, she saw a burning figure coming down in the atmosphere of her planet. She had seen a shooting star or two before, but they were objects that one could only catch for a split second. This was something that came down at a constant rate of speed. She closed her eyes to feel out for the energies far ahead.

Though faint, she felt a dark presence with it. There was more than one person. Despite not being able to make out their exact power, Chi-Chi knew for a fact that they had evil in their hearts.

She jumped out of her bed and onto her feet. A deep feeling in the pit of her stomach told her. "It's gotta be…"

"Did you feel that, too?"

Hearing Chaotzu whisper in the dark room as everyone else snored had caught Chi-Chi's attention. She looked over to her long-time friend and nodded. Chaotzu needed not to ask what was going on in her mind as the same thing was going on through his.

"We have to check it out."

Chaotzu wasn't all too sure about that. He looked around at everyone else sleeping. They were all pretty much young adults at this point, but Chaotzu knew that Muten Roshi would want to know if they're going to get themselves into something.

"Chaotzu…" Chi-Chi whispered. "If anything - and I mean anything - happens to us, we will simply notify them."

"It can't just be us two…"

Chi-Chi very much agreed with that. If they were to try and bring anyone else along, she had to know that they wouldn't tell. Knowing how each and every single one of her peers were, the woman knew for a fact that Krillin and Tien would be sure to tell Roshi about anything potentially going on.

But Kaston and Liban? They'd tag along no problem.

A curl of the lips formed on Chi-Chi's young face.

_If this is what I think it is...then it's do or die._

Mount Pazou was a beautiful area to bestow the eye upon. Despite having visited Earth numerous times in the past eleven years, Turles had yet touch down in this vicinity. He turned around to face Kakarot, who was now just about his height.

Kakarot and Turles were literally the spitting image of one another, even though they weren't father and son. While they lacked the immediate blood-line, they were of the same lineage at the end of the day.

Turles handed Kakarot a little pouch while he held onto another one. "You know the drill by now. Wait for me as I go ahead to collect."

"Of course."

The now sixteen year old Saiyan watched as Turles flew off prior to walking over to the edge of the mountain he stood on. Directly below him was a little road in which he could only assume that people used to drive on through their vehicles. Everytime he had come back here, Kakarot had the urge to destroy and cause havoc. The people here were simply far too weak and easy to kill, but as he grew older, he learned what Turles really meant by the little deal he had all those years ago. He couldn't kill anybody here. Nowadays it wasn't any fun just killing any old weakling anyway. Kakarot yearned for more excitement. Unfortunately, as he grew stronger, it was becoming rather difficult to find such out and about in the Universe with his growing strength.

With his eyes scrutinizing over the beautiful landscape that was Mount Pazou, his ears perked up. From coming here on more than one occasion, Kakarot quickly noticed that this certain sound happened to be that of a car. Looking to his left, he saw lights passing on by. He walked backward, let the darkness swallow him up, and kept his eyes peeled.

Seeing that he had something to possibly entertain him as he waited for Turles, Kakarot decided to follow.

Unbeknownst to him, Kakarot had pursuers of his own.

The young adolescent Saiyan made sure to stay up high. Thanks to his amazing vision, he could see the vehicle perfectly from well over a few thousand feet in the air. Whichever turn that the car made, Kakarot followed diligently. He didn't stop until they stopped by an old shack.

Out from the car, two people exit: one female and one male. Kakarot quickly read over their power-levels before frowning in disgust. Once they made it inside the little shack, Kakarot slowly descends down, not doing as much as making a single peep. He was as quiet as a mouse.

Bulma and Katayude go through some decorational items in the abandoned home before she finally pulls out a small, orange ball with four red stars on it. She squeals in excitement upon having found another one. "It's the second one we've found today!"

Katayude had been skeptical about the genuinity regarding the Dragon Balls, though he'd be lying if he said that he didn't enjoy this little adventure. Back where they found the first orange star Dragon Ball, they ran into a pig who was terrorizing a village. Katayude got local police to take him in and they all retrieved a Dragon Ball as an award.

"We've already got four of these bad boys," Bulma excitedly exclaimed. "All we need is three more before we can set them up and make our wish!"

 _Wish? Those things have the power to make wishes come true?_  Kakarot's tail began wagging side to side. With excitement coming over him, he decided to make a move.  _Turles just might take a liking to this._ Kakarot turned around from the side and entered the shack.

"Hey."

The unexpected greeting had startled both Katayude and Bulma. The latter of the two fell over while the former stood firm with his hand gripped tightly around the grip of his pistol.

"Who are you!?"

Katayude spoke more so in a demanding tone than that of a casual one - one that'd insinuate a question being asked.

"Who I am is of no importance," Kakarot answered. "But what I want...does." He then extended his hand out. "Orbs, please."

"Sorry, no can do, buddy!" Bulma shouted as she got back up on her two feet. "After I use these, you'll have to wait a year!"

Kakarot's blank face turned to that of a frown. "I nicely demanded you to give me the orbs. Don't make me force it off you."

Katayude pulled out his pistol and aimed it directly at Kakarot's head. He knew for a fact that the type of apparel he wore was some form of armor, so he aimed for the most exposed area. "And who's to say that you're in the position to be making demands? I have a weapon that can kill you aimed right between your eyes."

That last sentence was far too hilarious - so hilarious that Kakarot wanted to start rolling over on the floor and laugh his ass off. Just as a kid, he had been shot at with entire bombs as well as heavier artilerty. A single pistol weapon wouldn't do anything to him. Everything on this dump was delicate as far as he was concerned.

"Try me."

Kakarot began walking toward them.

**BANG!**

Kakarot remained with his hands positioned by his side for a split second and watched as the bullet came flying toward him. With perfect timing, he raised his hand and caught the hot bullet between the tip of his index and thumb finger.

Bulma and her companion were blinking one hundred times a second. Their brain began to fritz as it overworked itself in trying to figure out just how in the hell a person could catch a bullet so casually at such close range.

Katayude's mouth was so wide that his tongue was starting to become as dry as sandpaper. No matter what, he still couldn't wrap his head around what just happened. There was only one explanation - which was still unbelievable. "D-Did he just…"

Bulma herself was in utter disbelief at the otherworldly reflexes of this person. He got ahold of the speeding bullet like he was playing catch with an old man.

Kakarot flicked the bullet right back at the shooter without warning.

Tagomoro Katayude let out a yell so powerful that the glass cups and plates in the small home cracked. His gun had dropped to the floor as he had both hands up against the left side of his face. His entire body trembled, as well as his lips, which prevented him from speaking the only two words that came to mind.

Bulma yelled loudly and pointed at Katayude's ears that were on the floor. "Y-y-your…"

She passed out before she could even finish the sentence.

As did Katayude.

Kakarot chuckled. "That was easier than I thought."

With his mind on getting to the round, orange orbs that Bulma raved on about, Kakarot found himself unable to move his body for a split second. He slowly turned around, but what he found so unusual was that he was unable to do something so simple with no difficulty. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a little white pale-faced looking creature with big red dots on each side of his cheek with his puny hands out extended. He was sweating profusely and appeared to be trembling due to the sheer amount of effort he exerted in keeping Kakarot still.

Before Kakarot could make a move, Chaotzu had used his telekinetic powers to send the Saiyan directly through the roof of the shack and into the woods of Mountain Pazou.

Chaotzu fell over on his knees and gave out huges huffs and puffs. Chi-Chi ran up behind and brought Chaotzu back to his knees. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine." Chaotzu flicked some sweat from his forehead. He couldn't believe that he even managed to do what he just did. The little guy looked up to Chi-Chi with genuine fear on his face. "He didn't even know I was behind him and I still could barely make him move. It took everything I had to send him away."

Chi-Chi knew for a fact that if Chaotzu had to muster up everything he could just to make that man move with his telekinetic powers, then he was definitely trouble.

After knocking a couple trees down, Kakarot recovered and came to an absolute halt. "Who in the hell was that? And why couldn't my scouter detect him?"

The shadows that were made visible thanks to the illumination of the half-moon helped Kakarot catch the sight of a wave of energy coming directly behind him. The Saiyan turned around and deflected the blast just right before it could hit without him knowing.

He looked up in the trees in hopes of spotting the person who attacked him, but no luck. The moment that his head turned over his shoulders, Kakarot had been met with a fist right in the cheek. The surprise punch had enough force behind it to send him off his feet and sliding through the ground.

He quickly hopped back on his feet and began looking around to see what was coming at him. Before he knew it, he had two people double-teaming him. Kakarot blocked the two fists coming at his face and then continued to block both the punches of Liban and Kaston.

Kakarot started to cackle as he caught the faces of the two people that had taken him by surprise. "You two come out of nowhere and actually manage to land a hit on me?" He parried a punch aimed for the face before decking Kaston in the chest, knocking him back over on his butt. Kakarot grabbed Liban by the arm, turned around, then reeled him in prior to ramming his elbow against the young man's gut, which caused him to puke a little. Still holding onto his arm, Kakarot turned back around to face him and rendered Liban an uppercut that had him falling right back down onto Kaston.

"The fact that you two were able to orchestrate this and land a strike on me means that you not only have smarts, but some power as well." He then started to read over their power-levels. "Let's see how strong you are." Kakarot's eyes got big at the readings of 810 and 900. "Ohohoho, where were you two when I was on this planet eleven years ago? You would have made for the perfect challengers!"

"So it was you…"

Kakarot turned right around, only to be met with another fist to the face. Kakarot prepared himself this time and stumbled back just a little bit. Imagine the look on his face upon realizing that a female was the one to connect a solid punch.

Kakarot's back slammed into a tree trunk. Due to it shaking a lot, a bundle of leaves came falling down simultaneously. Some even got in his hair. The Saiyan looked over his little audience and chuckled. The fact that he wasn't able to see them coming - it amazed him.

"How did you get behind me without my scouter detecting you? How in the hell do all of you do it?"

Chi-Chi, now having confirmation that Kakarot took part in killing her father, new she had to keep her anger in control. By answering his question, it'd be somewhat of a distraction at least. "All you know is raw power. We have power and technique on our side, idiot. We can hide our chi at will while you and your friend stick out like a sore thumb. We don't need high tech gadgets to sense someone's power."

**Pipipip**

From the little guy, Kakarot got a power-level of 1,000 and the female had the highest out of all them, ranking at a battle-power of 1,430. The powers resonating from all these individuals were nowhere near Kakarot's but all together, they could give him a run for his money. A pleasing smile came over the young man's face as his tail began to wag and his heart started to beat hard against his chest.

"So it would seem that I would need to pick up on that…" Kakarot mused.  _Being able to hide my power just might come in handy one day._

"You're going to pay for what you did," Chi-Chi warned.

Kakarot looked over his shoulders, expecting to see the short, chubby one and the tall, lanky guy together. Upon turning around, he saw the two bald-headed Earthlings right beside Chi-Chi and the pale-faced creature.

Kakarot began to move his mouth at quick rates, though silently to where the others wouldn't hear. He memorized all their power-levels and quickly did the math to calculate how they would all fare against him as a whole.

 _I only hold a battle power of 3,000 and these weaklings all come up over 4,000 as a single unit. I need to watch myself._ "Well, what are you waiting for? Defeat isn't bestowed upon those that don't make an attempt at trying just to fail!"

Chi-Chi sneered. She could feel the sheer power vibrating from this character. Even in their suppressed states, her, Chaotzu, Liban, and Kaston all overpowered Kakarot. Despite being found out by the others, she knew she had to do this.

"We're going all out!"

As if on cue, everyone's battle power had began to rise that instant. Kakarot's scouter continued to go off. In near shock, he couldn't believe that they were also capable of increasing their powers so dramatically as well. He read each of their powers at their peak state before they came toward him at once.

 _950, 1,140, 1,330, and 1,680 equal over 5,000! Whatever the case, I can't let them all gang up on me._ Despite the worry that came with their increased battle-powers, Kakarot was full of excitement."Come on!" The Saiyan blocked a direct elbow that came from Chi-Chi. Before he could retaliate, she stomped directly on his foot and kneed him in the stomach in an effort to reel herself back from Kakarot.

He didn't feel as much as a single tickle and laughed it off. "That's it? Hah!"

**Pipipipi**

_AGAIN!?_

Kakarot turned his head over to where the reading was coming from. There Liban was, crouching down and charging an attack. Blue energy radiated from the very palm of his hands.

"And they can increase their powers through attacks!" Liban's power-level had jumped from 1,140 to 2,110 and rising!

Kakarot had a quick flashback to the moment where he was facing off against that crane hermit, Tsuru-sennin. Prior to using his signature move, his power had tripled! No doubt, the Earthlings were weak, but their technique wasn't to be underestimated.

Everyone then began to chant the very same attack.

"KAME...HAME…"

One was ahead of him, one on his left and right side, and the last right behind him.  _They're smart_. Kakarot admired how they managed to back him in a corner, though it didn't mean he was going to back down from it. After all, he welcomed a challenge. It mattered not if he failed this round, for if he did, then he'd have something to put him right back in the game.

The sixteen year old warrior raised his left hand, charging it with crackling purple energy. He aimed it for Liban, challenging him directly with his own attack. Chi-Chi and Chaotzu were still generating more and more chi, so he took the opportunity to fight off Kaston as well by firing an attack to the other side of him with his right hand.

Kakarot looked directly at Chi-Chi and winked right at her. At this point, he knew he was going to be out-classed, but Kakarot grew to love damage in battle. All it did was make him stronger anyway. He did a little pounce off his feet and positioned his chest right above the ground, aiming both of his feet directly at Chaotzu, who had two energy waves coming at him from Kakarot's boots.

"HAAAA!"

As soon as Chi-Chi fired off her Kamehameha, Kakarot opened wide like a dentist would tell him, unleashing a great bit of energy directly from his mouth. As primal as this move was, Kakarot loved the occasions in which he did it.

He was taking on four different people from four different angles all by himself. Kakarot pushed his body as hard as he could to hold them back. He was initially managing to hold off Liban and Kaston, though with the combined efforts of Chaotzu and Chi-Chi, losing this multi-beam clash was an inevitability.

Once the attacks closed in, Kakarot closed his eyes with a gracious smile before he had been overwhelmed by all of them. Despite screaming in agony because of the pain, he could be heard maniacally laughing out loud to the heavens. It seemed that the worse the pain, the more that Kakarot laughed.

Everyone could hear Kakarot's laughter, even after he was caught up in the explosion, lying down in a heap of smoke.

"I-Is this guy a masochist or something!?"

Kakarot coughed up blood but he continued to laugh. The pants he wore had been torn. Pieces of his armor was cracked and ruined, as well as his scouter, though the Saiyan couldn't care less. He felt like he was going to die but he loved it.

Slowly, Kakarot began to reach inside his armored chest-plate. Even though he had none in his pouch, Kakarot kept one out just in case for moments like these. He pulled out a green bean.

Chi-Chi was quick to catch on. "He's got a senzu!"

Before anybody could react at all by keeping Kakarot down, said Saiyan warrior shot right up from the ground, elbowing Chaotzu in the face. He had got a broken nose and ruptured kidney due to the brutal kick that had followed. Chaotzu was on the ground, rolling over in pain.

Kakarot wiped the blood coming from his lip and looked at his now tainted hand. For some reason the Earthlings couldn't understand, Kakarot found the sight of his own blood humorous...and delectable? They all shuddered once he licked it off.

"Saiyan blood shouldn't be wasted so much," Kakarot muttered under his breath. He eyed every single one of them. "The more you spill, the stronger it'll only make me." He then grinned. After clenching his fist and tensing his body, Kakarot tried to channel the ki that he had deep down inside. Being the quick learner that he is, the Saiyan managed to keep his ki at the same amount it was prior to eating the senzu bean. Showcasing his heightened power was nothing short of an intimidation tactic.

And it seemed to work.

With the shaking that Kakarot's growing power caused, everyone in the area had to either plant their feet in the ground or hold onto something stuck deep down to keep their balance. As he powered up, Kakarot's dark laughter echoed out into the far, far away lands of Planet Earth. He always felt great after eating a senzu and having grown stronger, but he never imagined it'd feel so good to be able to channel his power and increase it as he was doing now.

_Hahahahahahaha, what a rush!_

Kakarot jerked up and let out a brief yell as he reached his maximum power. The strong winds he pushed off his own body blew down some trees in the area, breaking entire rocks as well.

"If I had to guess, I'd say that my power's doubled." He then extended his hand out to Chi-Chi. "It's really too bad that I can't kill you."

Chi-Chi didn't get the chance to say anything before Kakarot pushed her back into a couple trees with a kiai push.

"Chi-Chi!" Kaston and Liban cried out.

Kakarot dashed in for Kaston in hopes of knocking him down as well.

The Saiyan was suddenly kneed directly in the back of the neck with enough power behind it to have the front of his face smashed right down into Earth's soil.

It was none other than Tien, who was accompanied by Muten Roshi and Krillin.

Kakarot got right back up on his two feet with his fist cocked back. He wasn't even surprised to see more people coming for him at this point. The only thing he knew that he was going to come out of this battle victorious. "The more, the merrier. Heh!" Kakarot formed a ball of energy in the palm of his hand, moved said chi ball to his other hand and channeled more ki out of that palm, enlarging the ball of energy by ten times.

Learning to do what the Earthlings did, Kakarot was getting a feel for being able to increase his own power through charged attacks. It proved rather strenuous given that his entire body was full of veins, but the Saiyan didn't stop until he felt he had enough power to shock them all. "You won't die, but I'll be damnned if any of you are able to walk again after this!" Kakarot cocked his hand back.

**"TAIYO-KEN!"**

Kakarot's attack fell short and cancelled out as he instinctively grabbed at his eyes. A flash of light shone so bright that Kakarot's eyes felt as if they were on fire. He fell down to his knees, clutching his face as he continuously punched at the ground in pain. Sure, he loved the pain that came with damage to the body, but the eyes?

 _That is so unfair!_ Kakarot growled.  _I don't have my damn scouter so I can't re-OH, Wait!_

Kakarot immediately recalled the words that came from that female's mouth. "We don't even need objects to sense someone's power."

_So that's it, huh? They try to sense it?_

With the pain going through his eyes waning down, Kakarot took in deep breaths and tried to focus. He tried to sense out for anybody in the area. After a full minute of doing this, nothing happened.

The Saiyan then opened his eyes and began to look around. Everything was blurry but he could tell that there wasn't anyone or anybody surrounding him. Kakarot was upset that he didn't continue to fight, but he couldn't help but smile.

"Next time I face off against these fools, they better be stronger. Because I'm coming with everything I've got." Since he no longer had to concern himself with those abnormal Earthlings, Kakarot set his focus elsewhere. "Now to where I left off…"

Kakarot rocketed into the skies, far above the trees. He briefly looked around and spotted the shack he was at just mere moments ago. He flew right over there in an effort to catch them. Once he saw that the car was still there, he grinned. He shot down right through the hole that he crashed earlier and landed with a great force-so mighty that it shook the entire shack.

There wasn't a single soul in there. The Saiyan looked down and saw that there was fresh blood drippings around. Despite the people not being there, he crouched down to pick up Katayude's ear. Looking over the detached body part, Kakarot began to contemplate.

He sniffed it for a moment before he took a bite out of it. He chewed and chewed on it before turning over and puking it out. "G-Gah!"

Kakarot wiped his mouth from the vile taste and shook his head.  _Foreigners usually have a sweeter taste while raw._ He spat out a bit of blood before he wiped his mouth and walked out the shack. "But now I know what you smell like. Heh." He then took off.

* * *

Tick tock, tock tick

If Turles had what the Earthlings called a watch, then he would have checked it for the thousandth time already. He had been inside the ship with a new supply of senzus for the past five minutes.

"I'm pretty sure I've made clear to that boy to be here and ready whenever I get back. We don't have all the time in the world. I'm ready to finally start what's long overdue."

Hearing the sounds of boots colliding with the metal floor of the ship had caught Turles' attention. He stood up from the seat he sat in and watched as the door ahead of him had slid open.

"There you a-" Turles paused and took a double take. Kakarot had bruises and dried blood all over with ripped pants. "What happened to you?"

Kakarot waived his hand. "You really missed out on all the fun, Turles. The Earthlings sure have improved."

"You were in a fight?"

Kakarot sat down in one of the chairs and nodded his head. "Yes. I faced four of them, all with battle-powers over 1,000. You could imagine the damage done when they ganged up on me."

Turles was finding it rather hard to belief that a race of people that average a battle-power of 1-5 can even manage to reach such levels. But by looking at his subordinate, Turles just knew that Kakarot's words must have been true.

"That's interesting. At the very least, you managed to get your worth out of it by having an increased battle-power, no?" Turles turned on his scouter and read the young warrior's power-level. "4,500?" He grinned. "Impressive. As expected, your power's grown more than the Earthlings combined."

 _So I'm actually doing it!_ Kakarot was unsure as to whether or not he was successfully holding his power back, but so far so good. He'd be sure to keep practicing from now on until he has it mastered.

Kakarot turned his head over to his mentor, who was headed into the pilot room. "I've a question."

Turles turned around. "Hm?"

"Where would your mind be if I told you that there is something far better than senzus that we can use for our endeavors?"

Turles' eye motioned off to the left of his head.  _Could there really be something out there greater than senzus?_ "Humor me."

Kakarot got back up on his feet. "Imagine being able to have any of your wildest dreams granted." He then snapped his fingers. "Just like that."

Turles' brow cocked. "Did you happen to encounter a genie out there as well for not following proper procedure?"

"I beg your pardon?" Kakarot then shook his head. "No, I'm serious. I followed some people out there today and eavesdropped on two Earthlings collecting some orbs that can grant them wishes. If we go hunt them down and gather them for ourselves, we can just wish for absolute power!" He then nudged Turles on the shoulder. "Now, doesn't that sound exciting?"

Turles turned around with a scoff. "Kakarot, believe nothing you hear and only half of what you see." He looked at the younger Saiyan over his shoulder. "Anything too good to be true just is, Kakarot. It's like the Super Saiyan myth."

Kakarot's head lowered. As a child, he was a strong believer in this fairytale, but as time went on, his belief weakened. He had yet to see a Super Saiyan, but a part of him strived to become the legend itself. If all it took was a really powerful Saiyan, then Kakarot could sure enough reach it. He strived to grow stronger in hopes of proving those who misjudged him wrong. He had a point to make.

"A myth. For ages, our people have been saying that a Saiyan can reach such legendary power by being strong enough. This folklore has been passed down for generations but nobody has definitely seen it yet." He pointed to his ears. "That's why I say believe none of what you hear." He then made a space between his middle and ring fingers. "And only half of what you here."

"Bu-"

"But nothing," Turles interrupted. "If I get a couple of rocks and toss them to you and claim that these rocks will allow you to change all of reality, you just need to get a set amount and collect them—would you really believe me?"

 _I really don't see how that analogy works out._ Kakarot rubbed the back of his head, rather unsure. "Uh…"

"Exactly." Turles grabbed a pouch of senzu beans and dangled them in Kakarot's face. "This is our rise to power; I have yet to come across anything so mystical such as these beans. We don't need any wish granting objects when we have these for our rise to power. This was specifically made for us Saiyan warriors. With each and every battle, we grow more and more stronger. The harder we fight, the stronger we become."

Kakarot rolled his eyes.  _Here he goes again._

"I know I've reiterated myself many times before, but I'd be lying if I continued to change up the story every time I have to remind you. So don't get smart with me and take the beautiful hand we've been dealt in this Universe. With your increased power, we're finally strong enough to start our main quest."

"Really?"

Turles nodded with a grin. "Oh, yes. I've been grooming you long enough, Kakarot. I've a power of 7,000 and you 4,500. As Oozarus, the Ginyu Force would have trouble against us right now. But know that we'll be growing stronger with every opponent we face from now on. Are you with me?"

Kakarot's expression changed at that moment. He felt it extremely unfair of Turles to ask him if he is with him simply due to the fact that he's been since he was four years old. For 12 years he's been with this man and he hoped to have another 12 as they rise to power.

Kakarot subtly changed his demeanor and then smiled. "Of course I am."


	24. The Ultimate Soldier

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> King Vegeta commences his plan on taking down Freeza's empire; Raditz decides to make clear of certain obstacles

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 24**

**"The Ultimate Soldier"**

* * *

Not a lot of warriors of the Saiyan race could get there and tell somebody else that they had been living for over half a century. Many tended to die in battle and a great majority of those that died tended to die young, which explained why a great number of Saiyan soldiers were usually up in age - especially the mid-ranking soldiers; it took years for many of the past to be able to get enough power to be promoted, some even going bald and grey. However, with the new life-support system and the Super Saibaimen inventions, culture was changing ever so slightly.

The Saiyans who got to live for extended periods of time were either in two different fields: lower-class warriors or top ranking soldiers (the mid-class and elite). The lower-class ranking Saiyans never had to worry about leaving off world to do battle, so safety was a sure guarantee. The others were just alive due to power and experience.

King Vegeta was no different. He could remember when his facial hair was just growing just some years ago. Though now, he could see his own reflection through the edge of the shiny silver platter that his food rested on. His facial chops grew thicker and greyer as they connected with his goatee, which were also revealing his elder age. Some wrinkles were forming on his forehead as well. There was just no denying it.

Age was getting to him.

But he didn't let that stop him from growing in strength. The King deemed himself as the strongest warrior on Planet Vegeta and for a great while, he let himself get complacent which ultimately resulted in his own son surpassing him at a rather very young age. The realization that he had to take care of one final thing before handing down the crown pushed him to train, though.

The creaking sounds of his dining room door opening had caught his attention. Ail, his butler, had made himself seen prior to stepping to the side. "Prince Vegeta and Kuni, your majesty."

Vegeta III had a hard time holding himself from grinning every time he saw his son, who had very much grown. Despite the shorter height and lack of facial hair, Vegeta the fourth was the exact spitting image of his own father. No doubt, the royal blood-line was a very strong one, indeed.

Had he been on an empty stomach, Vegeta would have been holding himself from salivating at the mouth, but he ignored the enticing aroma of the food and simply sat himself down directly across from his father on the entire other end of the table. Kuni sat on the left side between both the prince and king of Planet Vegeta.

No longer than when Vegeta and Kuni took a seat, the king had broken the ice. "Kuni, I assume that matters regarding my audience with Cold have been scouted?"

The violet-haired woman nodded her head. "Indeed. I've managed to get a hold of the perfect setting for your get-together. It's an ice-planet named Koori." She then raised her hand, revealing a rectangular device in the palm of her hand. "And here is the detection blocker we have installed in your ship so that you won't be spotted moving on along to your destination when the time arises."

Vegeta IV already understood that his father was serious about having a meeting with Cold. He had been throwing around this idea for months but it hadn't been until recently that they got to serious work regarding this matter. Still, he had to know one thing: "How do you plan on getting Cold interested enough in meeting up with you on some strange land?" Prince Vegeta, of all his years being alive, had only heard of King Cold from the mouths of his peers. He knows his name and some of the heinous things he's done, yet he's never seen the man. Hell, he's only laid eyes on Freeza once in his life. "From what I gather, Freeza is very secretive. I also take it that his father, who you say to be retired now, prefers to sit back in the shadows."

"That is correct." He then grinned. "Despite the gap that is between Cold and I in power, our wisdom and knowledge holds the same." After leaning back in his chair while interlocking his fingers, he verbally reassured his son and Kuni. "I know the perfect way of getting Cold to come out of hiding. Vegeta then looked over to Kuni. "I'll need you to work on gathering the workers needed to plant the necessities on Planet Koori. You're dismissed."

Kuni slid her seat back prior to getting up and walking out. Prince Vegeta smirked subtle enough to where only Kuni could see. King Vegeta's brow cocked as to why Kuni scoffed with a bit of laughter while walking away, though he didn't question it. There were more important matters at hand.

Once the door behind them closed, Prince Vegeta leaned back in his chair much like his father did moments earlier. "After you take care of Cold, how do I know when I have the green light on Freeza?"

"Initially, I wanted both to be taken down within a short period time of one another, though that wasn't me thinking far too head. If you were to request an audience with Freeza soon after being coronated and me getting rid of Cold, then it would be all too conspicuous, would it not?"

"They would, yes," Prince Vegeta agreed.

"You'd need to wait a few years after. Three, at the very least but no less. But whenever you feel that you're ready, then so be it. A Saiyan does best by relying on their instinct."

Vegeta IV nodded his head. Now, being a grown man, he felt that he could be somewhat more open with his father. They never shared the battlefield together, but they sure as hell did a lot of interacting over the past 11 years thanks to Kuni. "While I can't say that I've ever been emotional over the thought of you dying, I can admit that I've found a new respect for you, father. To be willing to sacrifice yourself for the greater good of the Saiyan race is th-"

"The actions of a true King," his father finished. "To be willing to sacrifice one's self for the greater good of one's own race is the action of a true king, my son." He pointed his finger over to his eldest born. "Perhaps one day, when at my age, you will understand." Vegeta sipped on a bit of wine and spoke once more after. "That is why it's best to make sure the first thing you do is form an heir after becoming King. You never know when your fate will be sealed. We're all ticking time bombs in this Universe."

This evoked some chuckles from the prince. "Seems to me all those silent moments in the throne room have been the catalyst of you thinking so much that you can't help but loop words of wisdom with the tongue."

"Wisdom comes with age, son." He then stood up from his chair. "Come here."

Prince Vegeta cocked his brow, though he didn't verbally question his father's words. Typically, King Vegeta only asked him to come so that they could talk but in this instance, they were already talking with one another. Though reluctant, the young man removed himself from his seat and walked over to the man who took part in conceiving him.

When father and son were just mere yards away from physical contact with each other, King Vegeta placed his hand on the shoulders of his first-born. "When Tarble was born, I was ecstatic to see that he had just as much innate potential as you did when you were first appointed to me. But since he's failed me, all I've had was you to cherish. As much as I would love for Tarble to be taking your place in the deposition of Freeza, I couldn't be more proud of you. At least one of my sons have been able to come through for me."

Prince Vegeta couldn't help but smile. His time of becoming King was closing in, he could feel it; it was just a matter of time. "The name Vegeta is a strong name to live up to. Failure is out of the question."

"Your attitude is exactly why you'll grow to become a Super Saiyan one day. You've broken barriers that no other Saiyan has been able to. A power-level of 30,000 is nothing to laugh about on and I can see you aiming to grow stronger as the years move on. Never stop excelling; never stop training. You're the epitome of what a Saiyan is. Do you comprehend what I'm telling you, son?"

"Yes, father. Of course."

They were on course of taking back what rightfully belonged to them: the Universe.

* * *

The world that had been conquered just moments ago was once a beautiful sight. Its skies were made up of all sorts of colors into one and the stars twinkled like no other. Despite the lack of water there, the physical appearance of the buildings there amongst other things was nothing short of gorgeous.

Until a certain someone touched down.

Raditz, while sitting down on a rock, had been munching on the decapitated parts of his victims, all of whom were burned to a crisp. The 21 year old Saiyan had grown insanely tall and his hair was just as long as it had always been, down to his very calves. The man was more so sitting on his hair than he was sitting on the rock itself.

 _All of these assignments are getting easier and easier as time goes on._ During his times as a young boy, he was always accompanied by some other companion; maybe it'd be Abo and Kado, or Appule and Kiwi. However, most of the time, it was with Kiwi or Appule. The both of them were fine in battle, though they tended to be wreckless and often acted very passive aggressive toward him. As often as Raditz asked to work alongside Dodoria and Zarbon, it would never be seen through. Raditz figured he'd have an easier time fighting with them since they tended to be so amicable whenever he came around. However, whenever Raditz was with Kiwi, he had came upon the toughest missions. It was a good thing though because Raditz had been placed in situations which only made him stronger. He even had a giant scar on his chest to show as proof of being on death's doorstep once. No longer fearing the unknown that came with the afterlife, Raditz toughened up because of it.

It had been just a few years ago when he decided that it'd be best for him to go on solo missions, just so that he could have some further form of excitement.

**Pipi**

His head jerked up and his eyes locked onto a ship approaching. Without a doubt, the ship belonged to one of ships of Freeza's subordinates. "Who might this be?" The man spat out the last piece of meat he chewed on and wiped his mouth before getting back up on his two feet.

Raditz had been wondering all sorts of things. Freeza would typically have lower-class subordinates of the Freeza Force land on conquered planets in order to clean up all the bodies that had been set to lie down. He knew for a fact that they weren't to come so soon, so he couldn't help but wonder what the hell was going on.

So he waited.

 _Two battle powers around 20,000._ Raditz smiled. "So some old friends have decided to show up." Without second guessing his action, the long-haired warrior shot off into the distance.

* * *

"What the hell?"

Zarbon's head was upward, his eyes going over virtually every single aspect of the planet that they had just landed on. He knew for a fact that something was wrong. Prior to heading toward any planet, he always made sure that the world was scouted. For any mission he was personally assigned, Zarbon checked the average climate, power-level, and overall makeup of the world. Though it had been some months since he got a good look at the planet they were supposed to go to, he could just tell that this wasn't it.

Zarbon turned around to face Dodoria, who was rubbing his big head as he chewed on a thick chocolate bar. He was all nonchalant about the atmosphere of this world, despite having seen the planet that they were supposed to be conquering anyhow. Seeing him looking all casually unconcerned just elicited a silent sneer from the green pretty boy.

"Dodoria, did you put in the right coordinates?"

Dodoria chumped down on the piece of chocolate before he responded. Zarbon crossed his arms and began tapping his foot but the pink fat brute couldn't care less. Sometimes he got a kick out of aggravating Zarbon. He could have answered right after swallowing down the last piece but he started to lick his fingers instead.

"Dodoria…" Zarbon repeated his name.

"Yeah, of course! You know I never mess up, Zarbon."

"That's because you're never the one to set the coordinates," the skinnier soldier answered as he began to ascend off the ground. He then entered the ship, landing right into the pilot room. Zarbon immediately went to checking over the coordinates that were set. Upon reading it and looking over a few others, he lowered his head and let out an exasperated sigh.

Dodoria rubbed his head and just waited. He used his scouter to try and detect for potential life-forms, but to no avail. He hadn't gotten a single reading. "What the hell's going on? These are the newest versions of scouters so how in the…?" He continued to click and click the device, only to get the same result.

But Zarbon's booming voice had side-tracked him.

"We're supposed to be on Planet Chip! You've brought us to Planet DIP!" The green-haired man shot from the ship and down right into Dodoria's face. "Just how in the oblivion could you get that wrong, Dodoria?"

Dodoria looked at his fingers while raising his hand and let his mouth open wide. "Oh…"

Zarbon's eyes narrowed. "Oh, what?"

"One of my fingers must have slipped when I put in the coordinates. There was this big, juicy burge-"

"Okay," Zarbon turned around, flipping his braid as he did. He had to restrain himself from slapping Dodoria in the face, so Zarbon took a deep breath and started to waive his hand around his chiseled face. "Woosah...Woosah…"

"Hey, there's no big deal. We just have to be out and about for another three months. Then we can head back to HQ."

And that was the problem. Zarbon had something particularly planned after their assignment, but he had to delay it because of this buffoon.

"Seems like somebody messed up proper protocol."

Dodoria and Zarbon both turned around. The voice they heard speaking had a sense of familiarity, though they were unable to pinpoint it. Lo and behold, when they saw Raditz for the first time in what felt like years, they finally understood why. The person they could remember as a kid had grown drastically. He stood taller than both Dodoria and Zarbon with a very bulky figure.

Raditz was officially a grown man.

"Raditz!?" Dodoria asked.

"In the flesh."

Zarbon smiled. Despite all three of them being so close to Freeza, they had rarely been around at the same time ever since Raditz decided to take on solo missions. For a while, he even figured that the long-haired Saiyan had died since he was never mentioned all that much. "Long time no see," Zarbon greeted. "I take it Planet Dip was your assignment?"

""Yes," Raditz confirmed.

"Hold up," Dodoria began waving both his arms side to side. "Time-out." He pointed at the Saiyan. "How did you sneak up on us undetected?"

Raditz crossed his arms.  _As much as I'd love to tell these fools that I learned a thing or two from Ginyu, I can't go around making them more jealous than they probably are, despite how much they may hide their envy._ "Don't know," the man shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe your devices are busted."

"No, no way," Dodoria denied. "We just got these new models a few weeks ago!"

"Well, I wouldn't know," Raditz told Dodoria. Noticing how quiet Zarbon was, he placed his attention over to the pretty boy. "So you came to the wrong planet, huh?"

"Right." Zarbon walked over by his pink peer and patted him on the shoulder. "But that fault isn't mine."

Raditz chuckled. "Well, where are you two headed? Maybe we can round this one up together and take them out as a team - like old times."

Dodoria looked over to Zarbon, who reciprocated the same look of uncertainty. From Raditz's perspective, it was as if they were speaking with another telepathically since their mouths hadn't moved not a single millimeter. He just waited for a response.

"We ain't too sure," Dodoria replied. "We're afraid that you may not be up to par."

Raditz scoffed. "You're kidding…"

Zarbon clicked the scouter over his left eye so that he could get a proper reading of Raditz's power-level. "You hold a battle power of 6,500, Raditz. The inhabitants of Planet Chip hold certain weapons that even surpass you in power. You can't come with us."

"Just sixty five hundred?" Dodoria rubbed his head. "The last time we saw him, the boy had a power-level of just five thousand."

"Right...and that was years ago," Zarbon pointed out.

"That's odd because your power was always jumping high after every mission for a while," Dodoria pointed out.

 _These fools really trust in their scouters far too much. If I were to show them my true power right now, there's no telling how they'd react._ The need to show off was beginning to eat at Raditz, though being around Freeza for over the past decade taught him self restraint in a lot of ways. This circumstance was no different. He had to play his role for the time being. "So what? You forget that I can transform?"

"They have no moon and we don't look forward to having some rampaging beast fighting alongside us," Zarbon replied curtly. "The people of Planet Chip have valuable assets that must not be destroyed anyway and we doubt you'd have a hard time keeping things speck and clean while under the form of a hundred foot ape."

Raditz had to hide a growl. Dodoria and Zarbon had tagged Raditz along many times, even when Raditz was weaker than those he had fought. Just what in the hell was holding them back this time? This was a great opportunity to finish their conquest much earlier than perhaps planned. Could it be they were afraid of splitting the profit? No, Raditz was already going to make his own for conquering Planet Dip. So what was it?

"You're Lord Freeza's favorite pet," Dodoria told Raditz. "We doubt Freeza would like for us to tag you along on a mission that you wouldn't be able to last on."

Raditz just stood there as the other two walked by and shoulder brushed him as they did. The Saiyan was beginning to grow hot in the face. He wanted to turn around and kill them right then and there, but he knew better.

 _Freeza's pet, huh? Is that all they really think of me as? Some fool who's just behind him every single day? I follow orders just as they do so what is it that makes me any different?_  Raditz turned around to see the ship gradually taking off. After a few seconds of watching, it just rocketed out, travelling at hundreds of millions of miles per hour.

Raditz remained there, thinking long and hard. Why the comment? He already knew that they envied him in some fashion, so what was the problem truly?

_Freeza's pet...too weak. But they've raved on about my potential many times in the past._

And as if an epiphany came upon him, a light bulb also formed atop Raditz's head. He turned back around to look ahead of him with his eyes wide. "So that's it, huh!? They fear me becoming strong enough to take their positions! They think I'm supposed to be a pet that's never going to amount to anything, eh?" Raditz started to cackle lowly before his laughter turned into that of a hysterical one - a laugh that would cause those defenseless to tremble in fear before passing out. After Raditz carried on for half a minute, he began to calm down.

He clenched his fist and tensed his body. The vascularity in the man's body became visible as veins started to pop up in his arms and around his face. The ground beneath him started to shake and rocks all broke in pieces as they were being lifted off the ground.

 _So they fear me being strong enough to rise through the ranks and making them all go forgotten! They think I've reached a limit, in where I've supposedly gone stagnant! But no!_  Raditz then calmed down. The rocks had dropped and the shaking had immediately came to a stop. "Little do those fools know that even Recoome can't stand to me. The battles I've been in has made me grow stronger more and more! The only person within the Freeza Force that can best me right now is Ginyu…" Raditz raised his closed fist. His entire arm was trembling, out of sheer joy. A wide smile came across his face. "Maybe I should show them all; I have what it takes to be the one who commands Freeza's entire army. If that's what it takes to prove a point...then so be it."

Raditz opened his now reddened hands and began to pull out a pad. With the click of a few buttons, his attack pod shot directly into his direction. "I just need to figure out how I'm going to get Dodoria, and Zarbon out of the way first."

Raditz ascended off the ground a bit before entering the open, circular ship.

"Lord Freeza doesn't have any idea that I am the ultimate soldier. But he'll see soon enough."


	25. Favor for a Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Selypa calls in a favor.

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

* * *

Most Saiyans didn't care at all for their kids. Food and battle was higher on the priority list than caring and even thinking about one's own child. That's how most of the higher-ranking soldiers of the Saiyan Army were, anyway.

Selypa wasn't one of those people, though. She took pride in the fact that she had beaten the odds stacked against her and became one of the best of the best of the Saiyan race. As disappointing as it was for her own son to be considered a lower-class warrior, she wanted something else to take pride in before she had been removed from the Universe. She desired to see her young boy grow into a promising warrior before her life was to be inevitably taken.

Taro was yet to check out as an official combatant but it'd only be a matter of time before he did indeed get promoted. He just had one year left to prove himself. That was more than enough time to get him prepared, despite the fact that Selypa spent most her days working under the King.

The doors to the throne room had opened. There was Ail, Vegeta's butler, to report the presence of a reporter. "An update regarding the soldiers and their performance of Planet Ino, sire."

A lower-class Saiyan who keeps track of completed missions hastily walked up a bit before stopping and bowing before the King. "Your majesty, a band of low-class soldiers that were meant to conquer Planet Ino have all been found dead not long ago."

King Vegeta looked around. His eyes batted from person to person of all the warriors lined up before him. In moments like these, when certified low-class upper ranking combatants weren't capable of conquering a certain world, then it meant that the inhabitants were either smarter or stronger than the data had showed. Regardless, moments like these called for the action of middle-class warriors.

After thinking about whom he'd prefer to take on the mission, Vegeta filled the silence. "Bardock, Totapo, and Pumbukin will all go to take care of the problem."

"You believe three soldiers will be enough?" Pumbukin asked the man.

King Vegeta nodded his head. "Before I make a decision, I am always sure to calculate if it's appropriate or not before hand. So trust my choice of action; three soldiers of your caliber is adequate."

"Wise decision," Bardock said. "We don't need to dispatch nearly half of our peers. We three are equal to two entire low-class teams combined. We can handle it." He then looked over to Toma, who rolled his eyes. Had he been put on as well, it would have been just like old times, but the man would more than likely be called to go and train some more children.

"That's the attitude," King Vegeta said. "Now carry on."

While watching them leave, Selypa figured that this was the perfect time to take action herself. She just silently prayed that a window of opportunity would allow her to leave the palace so that she could catch the three in time.

Bardock, Totapo, and Pumbukin all made sure to get rations before they headed off to the landing site. They walked over to their assigned ship, which had already been ready for them before they even left the throne room.

"Planet Ino, huh?" Pumbukin said as he munched on a piece of jerky. "I wonder if these people are really all that worth fighting."

"If it takes us then they gotta be," Totapo remarked.

"Same thing I was thinking," Bardock chimed in. The three all set the bags down on the ground. Pumbukin hopped on top of the ship as Totapo hopped inside so that he could catch the bag that Pumbukin dropped down from Bardock, who would throw them while outside.

"Gotta say," Pumbukin said as he caught a bag, "I figured we'd be going out a lot more since we've been promoted."

Bardock responded after tossing another bag over to Pumbukin. "Think about it; challenging assignments are going to be harder to come by the stronger we get. Notice how we only take missions that others have failed to accomplish. We're sent in to take care of the ones stronger than expected because we're above the average. And even then, the ones we take care of aren't often that powerful anyway."

Pumbukin couldn't make an argument with Bardock. "Good point." After tossing in the last bag, the big Saiyan turned around to see a familiar friend closing in on them. He chuckled a bit before notifying his peers. "Well, look at who's coming."

Totapo hopped from inside the ship after organizing all the bags and looked off as well.

"Selypa," Bardock muttered.

The woman came to a stop with her flight and remained hovering in the air. She looked down at Bardock, then to the other two before speaking to all three. "I need a favor from you guys."

"What?" Pumbukin asked. "Did the King really let you leave waiting duty just to ask a favor from us?"

Selypa scoffed. "Of course not. I'd have to grope his tail just to get on his good side and I don't have time for shenanigans. I actually got called out here to take care of a little problem; some hungry kid jumped on a shipment full of food and caused a ruckus. I decided that I could come to you guys and ask for a favor before I headed back inside."

Bardock, curious, asks what she wants. "And...what is this favor?"

"I want you all to bring my son Taro on the mission with you."

Totapo remained with a blank face and looked to Pumbukin, who had his shoulders shrugged as he looked at Bardock. The scarred Saiyan crossed his arms before deciding to be the one to respond. "You realize that the kid isn't a certified combatant right now. This could bring us in serious trouble by bringing him on board without proper authorization."

"You think I don't know that? And that's only if you get caught."

Bardock sighed. Selypa wasn't actually asking for a favor, but more so demanding it. He knew his comrades better than they knew themselves and with Selypa, the word no simply wasn't something she grew quite fond of. Seeing no other way, Bardock goes with it. "But I know how much this means to you. I also see this as the only way to eventually knock some sense into Toma. It's better to be proud of your son than disgusted by him."

"Man, I don't know, though," Pumbukin said. "He's still just a kid."

"Not just a kid," Selypa responded, "but my kid. Besides, I've been training him and whenever I'm not training him, he's training himself. The boy's growing strong but nobody wants to give him the time of day just simply because he was born with a power-level of six. We have to bring attention to him somehow, don't we?"

"She makes a fine argument," Totapo remarked.

"We'll make sure to look after the kid," Bardock spoke up. "After we conquer Planet Ino, we'll see some other missions we can find on the way back to take care of so that we have more time to show him the ropes."

This brought a big smile to Selypa's face. "Now that's what I like to hear! He lives where we all used to hang out back in the day when we were little." Without sharing another word, the woman shot off into the direction of the Saiyan palace. She had managed to get what she wanted, so there was no more room for conversation. Besides, she didn't want to keep the king waiting, either.

"That woman," Pumbukin snorted. "Sure knows how to get her way."

"Yeah, you're telling me…" Bardock scoffed.

* * *

At the peak of Planet Vegeta's heat, Saiyans either preferred to get their sweat on or stay inside and relax. The eleven year old boy named Taro knew that he couldn't allow himself to sit back and get complacent. Every time when the sun of Planet Vegeta was at its hottest, he'd begin to shadow box as a simple warm-up before he got to simulating battles on his own accord - something his mother taught him to do.

The pillars of rock that he was surrounded by gave the boy a great bit of shade, so because of that very reason, he stood on top of the large pillars and trained - hopping back and forth, throwing a serious of punches and kicks, only to hop back over to another one.

Not even five minutes in and the boy was beginning to kick up some sweat.  _I just don't get why I have to do it. If I'm meant to be some lower-class nobody, then so be it, that's what I am._ Everytime he used this argument to object to Selypa's personal goal of making sure he was on the frontilines, he'd be introduced with a vicious palm to the face. Selypa virtually forced him into training and becoming stronger despite the fact that Taro was totally fine with just being a common worker at home. Selypa always told him that a true Saiyan never settles for less and she'd be damned if a son of hers would allow himself to not live to his best potential - especially considering the fact that both of his parents are mid-class ranking soldiers.

"So what's the deal with this kid?"

A few dozen yards away, three young children were spying on Taro from afar: Zima, Choy, and their most recent recruit, Elery.

"He's just some weakling," Choy answered Elery. "It's been years and he hasn't even become a proper combatant yet."

Zima scoffed. As the son of Zorn, he didn't see the point of lower-class Saiyans even remotely trying out to be warriors. He had wished that things were changed to the old ways like Zorn told them that they were for the most part; with lower-class Saiyan children either being infiltration children or staying home to work as engineers. Hell, if it were up to him, the lower-class would just remain as engineers for the rest of their life.

"Let's go see what's up." Choy was right behind him but Elery couldn't help but shake her head. She already knew that he was up to something mischievous.

Taro tok loud and hard beaths with every punch and kick he executed. After a few quick punches and light kicks, the kid starts firing off chi attacks in the sky for a bit. He then hops back. Taro visualized fights in his head to figue out which move he wanted to do next, though the feeling of a wave of cool breath from the nostrils of another person had caught his attention, causing Taro to turn around and jump away.

"Who are you?"

Zima ignored the question and decided to respond with one of his own. "Just what are you training for?"

Taro figured that such a simple question would warrant a rather obvious answer. "Preparing to become a warrior."

"A what?" Choy asked him through fits of laughter.

"A warrior," Taro repeated himself. "What's so funny about that?"

"So wait…" Zima put up a finger. "You're not a warrior?"

Taro got the feeling that they were starting to mock him but he bit the bullet and answered anyway. "For now, no."

"Because you're weak, right?' Zima followed up. Choy breaks character and begins to cackle like he heard the funniest joke in the world, causing Zima to start howling as well. Elery just backed up from them and watched on as they cocked their heads back and rubbed their bellies as they chortled like mad men.

Seeing them laughing right in his face upon calling him a weakling caused Taro to get red in the cheeks. Sweat began to trickle down his face as his heart beat eleveated two-fold. As they coninued to laugh, Taro clenched his fists and tensed his muscles.

Choy and Zima both immediately stopped laughing once the latter had got clocked in the face. Zima had his chin on top of his shoulder and face turned away with his eyes looking down at the blood that dripped from his lips. Taro, with his fist cocked back once more, barked at him. "Stop making fun of me!"

Zima wiped the blood from his mouth and spat it in Taro's face before ramming his tiny fists into the boy's stomach. Taro's shoulders hunched up as his mouth went open. "You're going to regret that," Zima promised. He proceeded to clip the boy's ankles and maneuvered behind him just in time to render Taro a knee to the back prior to grabbing his hair and tail.

Taro's moans of pain shocked both Choy and Elery.

Having yet to train his own weakness, Taro felt his power draining quickly as each second passed by. It was only a matter of time before the kid fell down to his knees, hands clutching the dirt with his face down. Though most of his sight is blocked thanks to his face being mushed by Zima's boot, Taro can see the blank stare from Choy and look of discomfort on Elery's face.

"Come on, Zima, that's enough!" Elery shouted. "We have better things to do right now than pick on the weak."

"Shut-up!" Zima hissed. Hurt at the very fact that some low-class scum was truly able of landing a punch on the son of Zorn, one of the strongest Saiyans of the past, provoked Zima into teaching Taro a lesson. As he looked down on him, Zima spoke. "There's a certain pecking order on this land and I hope you listen to me and you listen good! It goes y-"

"It goes by you taking your boot off the kid's face," a gruff voice from behind interrupted.

Zima and the others look to see Bardock accompanied by his comrades all with their arms folded and looking down on them with frowns on their faces. Ocurrences like this weren't unheard of, especially amongst Saiyan children, though it didn't negate the fact that it was pitiful - especially in the eyes of a Saiyan that'd be willing of lifting his fellow men up instead of bringind them down - like Bardock himself.

"H-Hey, I know who you are!" Choy said, pointing at Bardock. "My father told me you were one of the people that worked on him during the Zoon assignment!"

Bardock eyed the kid. From one glance he deduced that the boy was Nappa's child. There was no doubt about it.

Zima's eyes narrowed as he got a good look at the scarred Saiyan.  _That means he was one of the people who worked with my father...who died there. One of them left before shit hit the fan and it was just my father, Choy's father...and him._ Zima bravely stepped up to Bardock, not breaking eye-contact. "You were there when the Saiyan warrior by the name of Zorn died, weren't you?"

Bardock nodded with a blank expression. His current body language betrayed his true feelings as he was getting to become extremely agitated. He simply came here to recruit the kid, not be interrogated by some wannabe detective.

"How did he die!?" Zima demanded. "Were you right with him when he died!?" Knowing just how strong his father was and also hearing of just how weak the people of Planet Zoon were, Zima found it hard to believe he could just die by one of them. Something was up - someone on the same team had to conspire against him. He was sure of it, for his father was the strongest on that team at the time.

Bardock took a deep breath. The final moments of Zorn's life replayed in his head rather vividly. Zorn looked like the complete opposite of the Saiyan that he established himself to be prior to his death. The way he went out wasn't the way of a coward but it wasn't the way of a warrior, either.

"You gonna answer me or not!?" Zima continued to ask.

"Hey, chill out." Choy walked from behind and grabbed Zima by the shoulder. "He's one of the highest ranking soldiers here. You gotta watch who you're talking to and how you're talking to them, bud."

Zima moved his shoulder away from Choy's hands and walked away by the older Saiyan, shoulder bumping him in the process. If Bardock didn't have some decency, he would have taught the brat a lesson by smacking him silly.

"Sorry about that, Mister Bardock," Choy apologized for his comrade.

Elery headed over to where Taro was lying down and helped the boy get back on his feet. "Are you okay?"

Taro pulled his arm away from the girl and even hopped away to increase the distance between them. He couldn't believe that he got embarrassed to such a horrible degree. All that training he's been doing and for what? To get beaten so easily? Even if Taro was aware of the fact that Zima was looked as one of the biggest generational talents of Planet Vegeta, he still wouldn't have taken kindly to being humiliated as he was.

"The kid has to go with us," Pumbukin told Elery.

"And we don't have time to waste either," Bardock added.

"Huh?" Elery tilted her head. "Where?"

Without thinking, Pumbukin answered her. "On a mission with us." He soon hunched over as Totapo gave him a rough elbow to the stomach for revealing such information. "Oo...my bad."

"But I thought he wasn't a combatant?" Elery then looked over to Taro. By the expression on his face, Elery could tell that he was just as confused as her. Maybe he was to become a combatant after all, though he wasn't aware of the news.

"Just be hush about it," Bardock told the young girl.

However, on the flip side, the fact that they were keeping this such a secret probably meant that they weren't doing this by natural law. If she had to guess, Taro was still unauthorized. But why would high-ranking soldiers go out of their way to showing a lower-class kid the ropes?

Taro knew for a fact that these guys were his mother's comrades. She had often described them well enough for him to recognize the Saiyans without needing a double take. He had no knowledge that he'd be going on any type of mission at all, but he knew that it had to be Selypa's doing.

Elery is rather ecstatic that the kid will be given his big chance to become a combatant.  _Maybe he'll be strong enough to knock some of Zima's teeth out one day fighting with these guys._  She looked back up to Bardock and promised him: "My lips are sealed."

* * *

Choy contemplated on whether or not he should ask his friend what happened back there. At first, he could see Zima was so hot that he didn't want to be bothered but after a while, he noticed that the boy had cooled off a bit. That was when he approached him in a conversation.

"Why'd you get out of line like that?" Choy asked him. "You know you can be punished if you start getting in over your head with superiors."

"I just wanted to know how my father died," Zima told him. "That's all."

"That's it, really?" Choy asked him. "Warriors that go out to battle die everyday. It's normal for a Saiyan to die eventually, even one of the best of them. Toma's told us that we always have to expected the unexpected out in the field. Anything that makes us vulnerable - even for a split second, can happen and wi-"

"Yes, I know," Zima roughly cut Choy off. "It's just hard to believe my father died instead of Nappa and Bardock. The Saiyan Zorn was known as one of the strongest warriors next to Amaran, who's now in my father's position. For him to die on a world full of weaklings just doesn't add up. With my father's power, he'd need to be beaten by more than one person and it doesn't make sense for some weaklings to make quick work of him."

Choy goes silent momentarily as they're flying through the skies. Upon thinking about if for a moment, the kid finally sees exactly where he's coming from, but it couldn't just be that definite. "Well, what do you think? You don't think my dad was in on it, did you?"

Zima scoffs. "No, of course not! Nappa told me that he found my father dead and the only person there at the time was Bardock." He then looked back to Choy. "That's why I think the way I do." He then remembers the look on Bardock's face after asking about his father. It was just something about that look; as if it was ridden with guilt.

"I'm going to need to ask your father for a favor."

"My dad's on a mission right now but I'll be sure to let you know when he gets back."

"Cool. You, Elery and the others can go ahead for the time being. I'll just wait for Nappa to come back."

Choy couldn't help but wonder what it was that Zima had in mind, but the kid remained quiet. He'd just have to see what his friend had in mind.

* * *

Anyone with a real life arch nemesis would know the feeling of wanting to tear the throat off the person who you can't see eye to eye with. This was how it was on Planet Ino.

Planet Ino was a beauty of a planet, having a multitude of giant, colorful blue trees and a bright warm sun. Unfortunately, the two separate clans could never go a full year without an entire war breaking out. The residents of both clans would many times try to have their warlords settle their dispute and come together again as they were in the past when their relationship was proper. But neither would ever.

But such had changed recently.

"Go, go, go, go, go!"

Grown men and women that took the appearance of trolls all retreated back home in an effort to gain more weapons. Those who used clubs, axes, and spears would have to watch their weapons snap in half. The ones using bow and arrows ran out of arrows and that didn't even help very much.

On the outside looking in, one of the warlords of Planet Ino looked on at the warriors that obtained their weapons and fled. But what was most disappointing to him was that he saw some of his bravest surrendering and running toward the direction of their homes.

Outraged at the fact that the men he spent years raising would cower in such a manner, the male warlord jerked up on his feet. The sounds of his teeth necklace ramming against one another echoed throughout his little palace.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Before any of his advisors could get there and let him know what's going on, the door had been kicked in by a red-headed female. She had a bow with many arrows and a barbwire club. "We're being attacked by the same fools!" Div roared.

Velikan and Div had already went through this just recently and it cost them a lot of their people as a result. The fact that it took two of the planet's strongest members to take them down meant a lot.

The former partners knew that this case wasn't any different.

As much as they disliked one another, they knew that they had to set aside their disputes once more in order for their people to prevail.

The very first time Taro had been on a mission and everything was just naturally falling into his lap. Seeing Bardock and the others fend off their attackers encouraged the boy to perform and he did just that with a smile on his face.

After blasting one dead, Taro's scouter beeped and signalled him that one was right on the side of him. Immediately after turning his head, the kid saw a spear coming directly at him. He moved his head to the side in an effort to dodge it prior to running right at the troll and elbowing it directly in the face.

Though when it came to killing one, it would seem that two more came out of left field. After Taro proceeded to pounce onto one's head, he formed a gaping hole through the chest of another. Once he fell down on his two feet, he rammed the back of his head against the person behind him, grabbed the troll by the arm and threw him into five incoming persons before dispatching all of them within the blink of an eye.

Pumbukin saw this from afar and chuckled heartily. "Ay, the kid's coming along just fine!" The fat Saiyan laughed while squishing the heads of his victims with so much force that blood oozed from their eyes, ears, and nostrils. Once he heard a crack, he finally let them plummet to their deaths.

Bardock ended one's life with a single kick to the face. Once he was no longer surrounded by any enemies for a split second, the Saiyan stopped to look around. Totapo was making quick work of the inhabitants and Pumbukin was being vicious as usual. Seeing Taro in battle was quite synonymous to how Selypa fought: from person to person, showing a great bit of agility and swiftness during battle. This put a smile on the man's face. "He's Selypa's kid, alright…"

**PIPI**

"Stand down!"

As soon as the order was given by Div and Velikan, the soldiers of the two warlords had all stopped fighting that very moment. All eyes had gone onto them two. Unlike their citizens, the warlords didn't bother using any weapons. They in fact, came in minimum clothing.

"They both have power-levels just barely 1,000!" Pumbukin said in an annoyed tone. "There's no way in hell the last squad should have ended up dead."

Upon hearing the fat one speak out, Div responded to him. "Your friends that tried to kill us didn't do so well of a job because they didn't expect to see what they all had coming!"

Pumbukin formed a ball of energy in the very palm of his hand with a cheesy grin. "Well, your time's up, fools! So die!"

Div and Velikan disregarded Pumbukin as he fired an attack directed for the both of them. The two warlords crouched down and began to shake violently, as if their bodies were beginning to morph. Once this sequence started, the scouters of Bardock and the others all started to go haywire.

Pumbukin's blast didn't do anything at all but blow up smoke. Div and Velikan could both be seen growing in size, to over seven feet each. Their teeth took the color of red and their eyes - pupiless.

"S-Seven thousand…" Pumbukin stuttered.

Bardock swallowed down hard and got into his battle position. "This would explain why they took care of the others so easily…"

Div and Velikan had an insane appetite for blood whenever they took this form; all they saw was red. They were very well in control of their actions but the will to fight basic impulse was one hundred times harder than before. The inhabitants of Planet Ino lived for bloodshed.

Div sensed the weakest out of the four and charged for him. Bardock nor the others were able to detect such speed coming from them. Div and Velikan had both rammed their heads into the face and stomach of the young Saiyan Taro, who could be seen spitting out saliva. The kid went sliding on his back but this didn't stop the warlords from continuing their onslaught.

Bardock growled and took off as fast as he could by flight. Taro was sent in the air and back down into the ground mercilessly. Seeing the kid get beat on angered Bardock but what angered him more was the fact that he couldn't make it to him in time.

In just the matter of seconds, Taro was bloodied and weakened, without any will to fight back. His armor was cracked in many places and his scouter now rendered useless as it shattered to pieces a while ago thanks to a devastating punch to the eye.

Towering over the kid, Div looked over to Velikan while licking her ashy lips. "Do you want first bite, love?"

Velikan, just looking at the kid's blood leaking from his mouth and nose, could nearly taste him. He huffed and puffed hard and extended his dirty, green sharp fingernails. "Sure...hehehehe…"

"Not on my watch!" Bardock came down rushing in on the two warlords by ramming the tip of his boot into both their heads. The element of surprise caused the two warlords to fall on their backs, but for only a split second. Bardock looked at Totapo and gave the man the go ahead by nodding.

Taro couldn't do as much as say thanks due to the short beating he received. Bardock was struck by both of them before he even could utter any form of gratitude. "Mister Bardock!"

The scarred Saiyan hadn't felt a great pain in a long time until now. These two held absolutely nothing back with their punches and Bardock sure as hell felt it. The Saiyan was already seeing stars by the time he was struck for the fourth time despite the hundreds of strikes that had landed.

Once he was beaten to the point where he couldn't get up, Div and Velikan stood over him. The former of the two had her grotesque feet placed against his chest while Velikan looked at him with a blank stare.

"I'll eat him alive!"

He meant so literally.

Once the man's teeth gnawed right into his face, Bardock couldn't help but smile. Velikan had immediately came back onto his two feet, holding his mouth and breathing hard. Div looked on in confusion as to what the hell just happened.

Blood leaked from the man's now empty mouth. His teeth had all broken into pieces from even trying to bite the Saiyan. He didn't know why or how but this scared him to no end. Given his physical superiority over the Saiyan.

As they wondered what could be the reason for such, they finally got their answer. Bardock began to suddenly grow in unnatural size as hair started to develop all over his body. His teeth grew razor sharp, giant fangs and he began to increase in size.

Before Div and Velikan knew it, they were surrounded by four different monstrous, rampaging apes.

Just when they thought that they'd be able to easily take care of this squad of savage warriors, they had been proven wrong for the first and final time.

* * *

Planet Vegeta was pretty much a ghost town whenever night time rolled around. The citizens of King Vegeta worked hard and slept hard. If they weren't sleeping, then they were inside either at the dinner table or in the bed, staying up late, save for the Saiyans who had to keep track of those who left and came back on the landing site. Regardless, people didn't wander throughout the night, though there were exceptions to the rule.

Zima stuck outside, remaining neutral high in the sky with his eyes fixated on the landing site from afar. He watched the marshallers guide some pods that came in and left out. Zima cared not for the people that were leaving, but more so for those that were coming back home.

The very moment that he catches a glimpse of a tall and bald Saiyan from afar, he smirked. "There he is…"

Ever since he lost his hair, Nappa couldn't help but keep rubbing his bald head. While leaving the pod alongside a tall bald warrior with a scar going over his head and a long greaying beard, the man huffed.

"I told you, it was just a matter of time."

The man he had took off with to conquer a planet was none other than his father, Coli. Like Nappa, he was abnormally tall. He used to be the same size as his son but with age, he thinned out a bit, though he was still quite muscular. He had so much facial hair that his mouth wasn't nearly visible.

"But so soon?" Nappa asked as he shook his head. "It's a damn shame if you ask me."

"Seems like I need not worry about my grandson losing hair since he doesn't have any to begin with."

"Ha ha ha," Nappa responded sarcastically.

"Hey, yo! Mister Nappa!"

At first, the man wasn't sure if his name was being called so he kept walking. The more he kept walking, the louder the sound of his name being yelled had became. Coli and Nappa both turned around to see a young boy approaching them from behind.

"That's Zorn's son," Coli told Nappa.

"And he wants me?" Nappa furrowed a brow.  _What is it now, kid?_ He turned back to his father and gave him the go ahead. "I'll be in my quarters shortly so make sure you let the guards know.'

"Mhm." Coli shot off.

No sooner than when Coli left the landing site, Zima had touched down there. "Hey, Nappa!" The boy ran over to him, stopping shy of a few yards. "Glad to see you've made it back in one piece."

Nappa rubbed his head, groaning. "Eh...I wouldn't say that entirely, kid. What's up?"

"I need a favor- a really big one, Nappa."

Nappa wasn't one to do favors for others blindly, but he did make exceptions. Zima was the offspring of Zorn, one of the most respected and efficient Saiyan warriors in history. In honor of the deceased soldier, he could do a favor for his son, no matter what it was. "A favor huh? Alright, then. Shoot."

"I need a supply of Super Saibaimen." After seeing the skeptical look on Nappa's face, Zima proceeded to speak quickly. "I know only promoted Saiyans can get them, and even then, a limited amount, but I really need this favor, please!"

"What for, huh? You're a bit too weak to be using them, ya know?"

"I know, I know, but whenever I'm old enough, I'll be using them to train so that I can grow even stronger than you and all the others in there! I'll give you half of my profits from every mission so that I can buy them off you. I'll just collect them for myself and by the time I'm strong enough, I'll have more than enough to grow exponentially in strength!"

Nappa wasn't sure if the kid was to use them whenever he was old and strong enough, but he didn't take Zima for an idiot. He knew that the kid had common sense and even a better sense of comprehension than himself. For being a chip off the old block, Nappa had a feeling that the kid knew what he was doing and he trusted the boy's actions. "Sure thing." Nappa grabbed a brown pouch that he had tied around his neck and tossed it to the boy. "Here. All yours."

Zima couldn't help but smile. "Thanks so much! I'll get the money ri-"

"First set's free," Nappa told him. "I admire your ambition to grow stronger. Most kids are just wrapped up in becoming soldiers and nothing more. You're already a soldier and you're not stopping there; you want to become the best of your generation. Because of that, you don't need to give anything to me this go round."

The cool points for Nappa had just increased ten fold. He always took a liking to the man because he was rather easy-going in comparison to most adult Saiyans he knew.

"I won't disappoint you, sir."

Nappa nodded. "I know you won't, kid. I know you won't." He then turned around and took off.

Being left alone now, Zima clutched the pouch with an extra hardened grip. Most of all, he needed to make sure that he didn't disappoint his father.


	26. Out of the Bag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vegeta learns something shocking about Kuni while working on Planet Koori as Kakarot and Turles proceed to make their move on Freeza's territory.

**Dragon Ball Governed:**

**Chapter 26**

**"Out of the Bag"**

* * *

In order to make sure that the non-combatant Saiyans were given time to work diligently while on Planet Koori, everyone were given thick coats that provided the most heat possible. The air was extremely thin, so thin that a lot of people needed oxygen masks as they mined the lands of Planet Koori, which was frozen solid

.

Perhaps the sun was a bit too far away from the planet. Coming in, people weren't even able to spot a sun nearby.

 _All of this better be worth it._ Walking by igloos and tents all around the area, Prince Vegeta observed what each individual was doing. While he would much prefer to be out on some other world fighting as he's been doing for just about all his life, the result that would come from this operation was simply far too good to pass up. Unlike the others, Vegeta walked around in his normal clothing: an armored chest-plate with his battlesuit and royal cape clipped to his shoulder pads. As hard as he made himself out to look, the goosebumps all over his face was just too obvious to not notice. He had fought on many ice cold planets before, though he just about met his match here.

"Prince Vegeta!"

Vegeta could hear the stomps on the ice that were being made as a fellow Saiyan approached him from behind. Looking at this person was a mystery; every single part of her body was covered, save for her nose and eyes. Despite the heavy clothing, the woman was still shivering to the point of where getting a seizure would come as no surprise."What is it?"

"I know that what we're doing here is of great importance, but after all this work is to be done, can you at least let us know just how much money we're expected to be getting out of this? I have a right in assuming it'd be a large sum, correct?"

Vegeta scoffed. Of course, of all the questions going on through the minds of inferior workers, at the very top of the list would be their potential compensation. After crossing his arms, he responded. "What you get in return to doing your job here is much larger than currency. You don't realize it yet, but what you're doing right now is helping the Saiyan race advance to a position of power that you never deemed possible." He then turned around.

Hearing a few stutters of an incoming question caused Vegeta to stop in his tracks before he could take five steps away. "S-So...we're not getting paid?"

All the Saiyan prince did was roll his eyes before he began walking away. "Get back to work."

The woman bended to her knee briefly as she bowed her head. "Yes, my prince."

The igloos and tents made of the area were all in a single file line, spread 200 yards down. There were two different lines with a multitude of igloos and tents on each side, so the atmosphere was synonymous to that of a small village. Vegeta had his sights on something else, though.

Once he saw the very ship that he arrived in up ahead, which was about half the size of Freeza's own, the Saiyan prince hopped up and came down right in the main room where he expected to see three familiar faces: Kuni, Nion, and Spench.

The three scientists were all within close range of one another as they looked over blue prints set out on a steel table. All three of them were so focused into making this work that they didn't notice their prince listening in on their works right behind them.

"This planet has a radius of this planet at the very equator is 2,470 kilometers exactly," Spench spoke. "So it will take a while before we can set up as many nuclear microbombs that we possibly can within the planet."

"And given the sizes of the microbombs that we're supposed to be planting, we have to implement hundreds of thousands of these."

"Possibly millions," Nion added.

"If we want this done within the time frame that will please the King, then we need to put in an average 5,000 a day with this planet's orbit."

"Nice math, Spench," Kuni commented.

Spench just chuckled it off. "I do what I do best."

"My father wants this done in in six months," Vegeta spoke up. Subsequent to catching the attention of all the others, he resumed speaking. "He intends on passing down the torch at that time period, so whatever it is you must do to ensure that this operation is completed before the appropriate deadline, then so do as assiduously as possible."

"So soon?" Nion asked him. "With all respect, you do not even have any idea of what woman you wish to procreate with yet in order to have an heir, so why become king so soon?"

Vegeta's lips curled into a smirk.  _If only she knew the true significance behind all this._ "Because my father has big plans," Vegeta answered her.

Nion then looked over to Kuni, who could feel her hard stare piercing her skin. Upon looking back, Kuni subtly nodded.

_The chance is now, Kuni. The heat of the iron is reaching its peak and you must strike before it begins to cool down. Planet Koori is the perfect opportunity to plant our seed. We must not disappoint._

_Yes, I know._

Spench looked at Nion and Kuni with a very odd look. They had been staring at one another for the past ten seconds as if they were stuck in some trance. "You two okay?"

Nion and Kuni looked to Spench and nodded. "We're fine," they told him simultaneously.

Vegeta, who wasn't even paying those three any mind, had his head looking up through the main entrance/exit of the ship. His eyes motioned from the clear skies of the planet and onto the walls of the ship. Nothing was physically touching the ship, but for some reason it was oddly shaking.

If he had a scouter, he'd be able to get a reading of something, but it wasn't as if he needed it to tell him something was wrong. With his suspicions growing, Vegeta's brow furrowed.

"Something's the matter…" With curious getting the best of him, the Saiyan prince began to lift himself off the floor of the ship. The very first thing he saw upon exiting was a giant frost beast with arms the size of a three story house.

Saiyans down there that had been working all banned together in an effort to contain this monster by using guns and energy attacks. Though all this did was keep the frost animal at bay.

Vegeta grinned. He had no idea just how strong this creature was, but he most definitely hoped that it would be something worth fighting. Vegeta hopped back down inside the ship to face Spench and the others. "There's some beast out there that thinks it can just trespass on lands that no longer belongs to it." He began to unclip his royal cape.

Spench grabbed the cape Vegeta handed to him and just blinked. "Is it that bad?"

"Anything bad is something I can't beat," Vegeta told the man. "And as far as I'm concerned, this is terrific."

Vegeta shot back out of the ship, hovering in the cold skies of Planet Koori. Much to his dismay, everyone that made an attempt at taking down the beast were just looking on as the frost giant was somehow taken down within the blink of an eye. It lied down on its back with its eyes rolled to the back of the head.

"What in the hell?"

Looking on, he could see someone hovering just right above the defeated giant. Though she was very far away, Vegeta could see her quite well. Just to make sure if what his eyes saw were true, Vegeta turned right back around in the ship, where he only saw two people instead of three.

"It couldn't be…"

Kuni defeated the damn beast.

With night rolling around on Planet Koori, it had gotten even colder. Luckily, those who had the bright idea to bring flammable objects did so just in case. Not only did it provide for great warmth in the area, but it helped provided dinner, too.

With the size of the frost beast that had been taken down just moments ago, it would have been more than enough to feed every single Saiyan in the area for the night, which meant that they didn't have to go out of their way to use their rations.

Pieces of the beast's body was being rolled around on different fires throughout the area. While everyone picked which body part they wanted to feast on, Vegeta just sat back, watching them all.

 _The typical non-fighting Saiyan possesses a power to that of around three hundred to six hundred. All of those who tried to take that thing down weren't able to do so with a combined effort, yet Kuni was able to dispatch of that eye-sore as if it was child's play._ Vegeta replayed all that happened over and over again for hours after the incident had transpired.

When he headed back in to resolve the problem, he didn't even recall Kuni being there. During the time that he decided to prepare for battle, the beast was still standing high and mighty. He wasn't even down there for a total of 15 seconds before he came back up to see it was taken care of. In that amount of time that he didn't witness Kuni defeating the creature, she could have only gotten a handful of strikes in.

_So she's been hiding her power this entire time._

His eyes motion off to the side, where he sees Kuni side by side with Spench.

"I strongly believe that brain doesn't make the person, neither does brawn by itself, but both." Kuni then raised her finger. "However, the brain has no true limits if you push it hard enough. Compared to the body, the brain is virtually limitless, which is why I choose to excel in science rather than combat."

Spench was amazed to hear all of this. He didn't even think that any of Kuni's kind could be warriors like a Saiyan, much less stronger than a common warrior. "By the way you took down that thing, your combat power must be off the charts. How come it's been gone unnoticed like this?"

"She has the ability to conceal her power," Vegeta answered Spench from behind. Once he got the attention of the two, Vegeta cocked his head to the left, non-verbally telling the young woman that he wanted to converse in private.

Kuni understood what he meant and got from her seat. "Excuse me, Spench."

"Yes, of course."

Right across the little work area, her eyes made contact with Nion's. The female clone slowly closed her eyes with a subtle nod of the head before turning back around to entertain those that she was surrounded by.

After getting a good distance to where none of the others would be able to hear them, Vegeta began to speak. "I'm no fool. To be able to pull off what you did earlier in that amount of time tells me that you're no amateur. And to be able to conceal your power as well is an indication that you have experience in the battle-field, though all this time you've been masking yourself as some little clone who knows nothing but colored marbles and blood genotypes." His hardened stare grew narrower. "Just where did you get all this power?"

The look that Vegeta gave her would intimidate others, but it didn't intimidate Kuni. Instead, she just cleared her throat prior to responding. "I was never supposed to blow my cover off like this, but I feared that the monster would have killed someone if something wasn't done soon enough. You were taking your sweet time and well...I took action."

"That still doesn't answer my question."

Kuni paused for a brief moment.  _So here's the moment of truth._ She wondered just how Vegeta would react once she told him but the time spent thinking about that now would only contribute to Vegeta's growing impatience. "Very well. I'll tell you, though only if you can keep this confidential."

"While I'm particularly not one for secrecy, I can make an exception with you - now spit it out."

"The truth of the matter is that I'm really not a clone, at least not like the others are. While my mother is a clone, the man who participated in my conception was a long, forgotten Saiyan who I don't even know. He got into great trouble for copulating with someone other than his kind and my mother lied by saying that the man forced himself onto her. She hid the fact very well that she carried. Once she birthed me, she passed me off as another clone, despite the fact that my color hair is different than all the others. She had to pull a lot of strings, but I'm not surprised; my mother is one of the smartest people I know."

Vegeta didn't know if to remain silent or bust out laughing. "So you're telling me that you carry Saiyan blood in your veins?"

"Yes."

"Well, that would explain a lot: such as why you act different and why you're abnormally strong."

"Yes."

"And it's also ironic because you told me when we were children that we Saiyans are nothing more than brainless brutes! Yet you supposedly are one of us?"

Kuni just grinned. "I had to sell it, didn't I? Seeing that you find it hard to believe, I have to commend myself for doing pretty well."

"Heh. And I still don't believe you. In order to truly convince me, I am going to have to fact check you. Have anybody who can attest to your story?"

 _I knew he was going to ask that._ Kuni raised her arm and pointed her finger directly across the area. Vegeta turned to where she directed her finger. Before he could set his eyes on the person, all he needed to catch a glimpse of was the blue hair.

So it all just made sense; why they worked together, why they got along more than other clones usually would. It all just came together.

"Nion."

* * *

The sounds of typing and a few coughs here and there from a tired man echoed in the room. As he went over the reports of what he's accomplished thus far in the past few months, he's managed to tune out the bubbling and few beeps that emanated from the rejuvenation tank in which a healing soldier remained.

After filing in another report, the bird-looking doctor turned his head to see the man sound asleep. "Still about half an hour until he heals."

Sometimes he couldn't help but wonder what kind of battles some people went through to where they would need to spent countless hours healing. Not a day in his life had the man ever set foot on the frontlines of battle, so he left it to his imagination to simulate what's happened and even the worse of thoughts couldn't amount to events that's truly transpired.

"All I have to do is wait thirty minutes, check him out, and I can get some sleep." His mouth opened wide and he stretched his hands out as he let out a big yawn. As tedious as this job was, he sure was thankful to not have to be in life of death situations every other week. "Guess I can head out for a coffee in the meantime."

Walking down the bland corridors of Planet Freeza 79 was just as sleep inducing as work was. Looking at the doors reminded the doctor of his very own quarters in which he would just about kill to sleep in right now. All he had to do was hold out just under a half-hour so a coffee beak would kill a great amount of that time. Before he knew it, he'd be safe and sound sleep.

As he walked through the corridors, he spotted a soldier walking on down toward him. The doctor simply thought he was just another fellow patrolling the area as some guard soldiers did but once he stopped while ten yards in front of him, he began to think differently.

Besides, he never saw someone that looked much like him before: a tall, lanky, grey skinned bald male. It took a while but once he got closer, he immediately figured it out. "Tagoma?"

Tagoma nodded his head and extended his hand to greet the doctor. "Malaka, good to see you're all well."

"Here for the annual check-up, I assume, eh?"

"Yes," Tagoma answered. "You don't have a problem with me doing my job do you?"

"Oh, of course not!" Malaka shifted to the side and turned around so that he and Tagoma could walk side by side. "Everything will look just the same as it did last year when you came on by."

"That's what I hope."

"You've nothing to worry about," Malaka assured him. "So, how's the wound healing?"

As soon as he was asked about the wound, Tagoma got hot in the face. He stopped walking for a brief second and turned back to make sure nobody was nearby behind them before leaning in to Malaka's ear. "We don't need to comment about what happened…!" Malaka covers his mouth to try and stifle his stubborn laughter. Tagoma removed himself from the man's face and cleared his throat as he stood erect. "But to let you know, I don't think I'll be having kids...ever."

"No surprise there."

Seeing that they passed up his work of space, Malaka only grew curious as to where Tagoma was headed to. "Where might we be going?"

"Surveillance room," Tagoma answered. "From my experience, that room is where the most incompetent and treacherous actions can be taken without anyone come to immediately notice. Scheming, plotting, conspiracy, the entire lot of it."

"Truly?"

"Yes," Tagoma confirmed.

The bright white lights that everyone on the outpost of Planet Freeza 79 had been used to suddenly vanished as it got black. Immediately after the lights went out, a dark red color illuminated the corridors. A ringing alarm came right after.

"This doesn't seem like good news…" Malaka muttered.

The doctor went falling over on his back due to an unexpected shake in the building from outside. Tagoma applied abnormal pressure to his feet so that he could withstand his ground as the area rocked around. "We're being attacked." Seeing that Malaka suffered a big blow to the head after he fell, Tagoma extended his hand in an effort to lift the man back up on his feet. "You need to find a place where you can safely hide."

With the attack on the outpost of Planet Freeza 79, there was virtually no escaping safely. The entire construction of the base was built on a mountain surrounded by nothing but trees, which made it extremely hard to traverse on by foot. One wrong move and you'd be falling right down half a thousand feet of seeming nothingness.

Turles knew this all too well and he used this to his advantage. By blowing up a building on the very edge of the mountain, it'd no doubt bring some people falling down to their deaths.

Still, that didn't prevent the defense forces from attacking.

Kakarot, while flying upward, punched a man square in the jaw prior to blasting him down to the depths of the planet at point blank range. Though like weeds, once one was dealt with, two more would sprout.

Seeing two orange skinned men charging at him as if he could be taken down by a certain amount of people put a smile on the Saiyan's face. Kakarot ducked under a punch, grabbed the man by his wrist, then proceeded to elbow the other soldier dead center in the gut with more than enough force to take him down. Kakarot rose himself up and drove the tip of his elbow against the other man's arm as he held his wrist, which resulted in a snap that echoed through the heavens of the dark planet.

As he cried, holding his arm, Kakarot stared at the pained soldier with a gracious smile. In middle-air, the soldier turned around. "P-Please...do-!"

With a blast through the heart, Kakarot shut the man up. "Closed mouths don't tend to get fed but mouths that are about to be closed for eternity don't have a place in begging." He proceeded to spit at the falling soldier before getting distracted by his comrade.

Hearing Turles' roaring laughter from afar as he fought more than five people at once, Kakarot frowned.

"You think you can just take all the fun!?" Kakarot zoomed in on one of the men behind Turles and broke his jaw with a fist to the face. The pop that came after the strike was an indication that his neck broke, so Kakarot turned to grab a soldier by his long-hair and chucked him away prior to reducing him to ashes with a wave of energy.

Turles motioned his head to the side and swatted all three punches coming his way with one arm. He punched the soldier in the middle in the nose, drawing a great amount of blood. The man on the far right was elbowed in the ear so hard that his ear-drum busted. And as for the man on the left, he grew wide-eyed and tried to flee.

Before he could get three yards away, Kakarot grabbed him by the ankle, chuckling menacingly. The young man's laughter was a never ending record in the man's head during the very last moments of his life.

Turles grabbed the faces of the two men remaining and rammed them together with so much force that blood came oozing out their mouths, eyes, ears, and nose. Once their eyes rolled to the back of their head, he just let them both fall down below.

Kakarot looked around the vicinity and frowned. It appeared that there were a lack of reinforcements on the way. "That can't be it," Kakarot grumbled.

Turles pointed down below while shaking his head. "Of course it isn't."

A purple-skinned soldier with an abnormal sized head approached both Saiyans with his fist cocked back. "In the name of Lord Freeza, you won't live to see the day that you leave this world!"

Turles just tapped Kakarot on the shoulder and motioned his head over to the warrior who approached them both.

"Will you do the honors?"

Kakarot faced Turles, not even bother to look behind him as Appule got closer. Even though Kakarot knew just how far away this man was by sensing his ki, he decided to go ahead and ask anyway. "How close is he?"

Turles crossed his arms and began the countdown. "Three...two…"

"One," Kakarot finished.

Had Appule foreseen the punishment one single punch would bring, he wouldn't have decided to be brave on this unfortunate day. The impact Kakarot's fist made with his face was more than enough to send him flying for thousands of yards away involuntarily. Luckily for Appule, his brain shut down before he felt the full extent of the pain Kakarot bestowed upon him.

"That seems to be about all of them," Turles said.

Kakarot shook his head. "Not quite."

"Hm?"

Had Turles decided to keep using his scouters, he would have been able to pick up the person that was closing in on them, but he'd be stupid to still be using those by now. Each and every single scouter belonged to Freeza and he had the power to listen in on all of them. They were running a huge enough risk as it was just by coming here.

"Watch out!" Kakarot pushed Turles out of the way just in time to keep him from getting attacked. The young Saiyan barely had enough time of his own to be able to dodge the incoming blast, but he did so just in the nick of time. One centimeter closer and the beam of energy would have grazed his face.

From down below, Tagoma could be seen with his hand stretched out. "Nice reflexes. Too bad that won't save the either of you for long."

"Of course the strongest is the last to join the battle," Turles joked. "It all ends the same, so no matter."

"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you." Tagoma ascended higher until he was on even altitude with the two Saiyans. "Every soldier you just fought had a battle power of three thousand or lower. I'm more than three times stronger than all those weaklings."

Turles grinned. "Humor me."

"Gladly."

The dark-skinned warrior jumped off for Tagoma, who got out of the way just in time to counter by ramming his two fists in his back. Turles was in disbelief at the insane speed that he had just showcased but he was glad to finally be able to face someone stronger than himself. It's been a while since he has.

As he was in the midst of falling, Turles turned around and fired a myriad of attacks. Tagoma blitzed Turles, bypassing each and every single chi attack prior to kneeing him right in the face.

Kakarot knew this guy was out of their league from the moment he sensed him. To allow Turles to fight him on his own would be basically signing his death warrant, especially if he wouldn't be allowed to rejuvenate himself with a senzu.

With the scouter alerting him that a target was coming toward him from the side, Tagoma stuck his hand out and blasted Kakarot head on before he could do as much as lay a finger on him. Kakarot was sent away but he regained control by flipping over and cupping his hands together to blast Tagoma.

The grey-skinned soldier rushed in for Turles yet again to have his punch blocked. Said Saiyan grunted in pain as the impact of the strike sent shocking sensations down his arm. He tried to dodge another hit but was grazed in the face and blasted at point-blank range.

This sent him spiraling down into the trees below.

Seeing Turles falling down as he did, Kakarot could only grind his teeth. He knew Tagoma was to be taken seriously, though it wasn't until now that he realized that he wasn't some joke of a footsoldier. Looking dead at his eyes, Tagoma responded with a wink before making an attempt to blitz him once more.

Kakarot got ready for it and blocked the man with his forearm. Tagoma was rather impressed with the fact that he reacted so quickly. "Not bad for a Saiyan."

As they were in the struggle, Kakarot tensed his body, grit his teeth, and continued to push back. This caught Tagoma by surprise as he read the increasing numbers on his scouter.

"5,000...6,000…7,000...8,000...nine tho-"

BAM!

For the first time since he decided to jump in, Tagoma got a taste of his own medicine. The hit he received from Kakarot sent him soaring, though only temporarily. By the time he flipped around, the Saiyan was already behind him.

Tagoma shifted and spotted the Saiyan performing an upside down kick aimed for the face. While he did block it, he paid for it as Kakarot blasted him in the center of the stomach. With smoke deriving from his stricken body, Tagoma growled.

"Not once has anybody touched me like this in battle for years!"

He rushed back for the Saiyan.

He and Kakarot both started going back and forth, block for block, blow for blow. There was no telling who shed more blood because of the fact that each hit both of them gave another drew red.

Kakarot used his shoulder to get a shot at the chin. Tagoma shook his head quickly before getting two quick jabs to the face and an upper-cut. As ferocious as these punches were, he endured them and counter-attacked by headbutting Kakarot three times in a row and kneeing him in the gut prior to ramming the palms of his hands on each of Kakarot's ears.

With his vision blurry and head ringing, this left an opening for Tagoma, who initiated a relentless series of combos. Subsequent to rendering the warrior an uppercut elbow strike, he immediately followed with a bolo punch to the kidney.

Kakarot tried to hold it in, but another fist to the kidney forced him to spit up blood. If he was going to do it, he made sure to do it where it counted.

By spitting a rather scary amount in the face of Tagoma, it messed with his sight. As he was focused on trying to get blood out of his face, Kakarot grabbed him by the arm, turned around and kneed Tagoma in the back before forcing his opponent to face him so that he could ram his forehead into his face. After his hand was let go, Tagoma was given no room to breathe thanks to Kakarot's gruesome karate chop to the throat.

He backed away as he cupped his hands and started to charge another attack. With his eyes closed, Kakarot recalled how the Earthlings were capable of channeling their power to a single focal point and drawing extra energy to increase the amount of power that went into their attack.

It wasn't easy to do as it took more out of him than a simple energy attack, but the time called for it.

This technique was the exact one he saw the Earthlings use and he figured it was the one he should also use to end this fight. He forgot the chant but he knew how to generate the power.

With more and more power flowing out into the palm of his hands, the more that said palms separated due to the blue ball of light that formed. Once Tagoma was done gasping for air, he got laser focus onto the Saiyan.

Had his scouter not fallen off during the middle of battle, he would have realized just how much trouble he was in. The moment he lunged in for him, Kakarot let the attack go at point-blank range.

Tagoma's yells were so loud that it had woken up Turles down below, who had been knocked unconscious. The feeling of his armor growing hot with his skin beginning to burn was nothing comfortable to deal with.

Tagoma had been pushed far back with no control over his flight. There was no way that a Saiyan could be this strong, could there? From what he heard of, King Vegeta was just about strong as he.

Right from the corner of his eye, Tagoma spotted a man zooming in from afar: Turles.

Having healed himself by taking a senzu, Turles never felt this good. Once he got close as Tagoma kept on soaring, Turles placed his hands up above and behind his head. "My subordinate did a good job on holding off against you. Now it's time I finish the job."

Tagoma could only stare at the purple ball of light; his maker.

A single blast from Turles was all it took to end the man's life.

Meanwhile, Kakarot was hunched over while in the sky. This was the very first time he poured in a great bit of energy from using a charged attack. If the Earthlings were more than used to utilizing their attacks like this, then he had a lot to learn.

"Job well done," Turles shouted from far below.

The sound of a flick coming from Turles was an all too familiar one for the younger Saiyan. Kakarot caught the senzu coming his way without bothering to look. In just the matter of seconds after eating, he was not only back to normal, but even stronger.

Kakarot clenched his fists, flexed his muscles and ignited his aura for a brief moment with a wide smile. "Ah….that feeling never gets old."

"Indeed it doesn't." Turles looked over to the base of operations. "Now let's finish the job, shall we?"

* * *

Minutes had passed since he heard any destruction or screams. Thinking himself to be in the clear, Malaka got himself from under the table and slowly walked over to the door.

"Maybe they don't have any scouters...I should be in the clear."

As soon as he opened the door and exited, all he could see was blood splattered on the walls and corpses piled up. It would seem that the people who even tried to flee didn't even manage to make it. Many times had Malaka seen a warrior all bloodied and beaten, but he had never seen the immediate aftermath of death.

It left him still with his mouth agape.

"You seem to always lead me to another survivor. Just when I'm thinking that we've killed everyone, there's always one more."

Kakarot grinned. "What can I say? I'm good at sniffing people out."

Hearing the voices of these two behind him made Malaka's heart skip three beats. His sweat became cold but more started to protrude all over. Slowly, he turned around. Seeing two Saiyans that looked just alike one another was utterly terrifying - so much that he could pass out right then and there.

"W-W-W…"

"Save your breath," Kakarot cut him off. "We're here to kill you, simple as that."

"Any last words?" Turles questioned.

"Why are you doing this!?" Malaka fell to his knees. "Lord Freeza will have your heads once he finds out the Saiyans are behind this."

"Two Saiyans doesn't equate to the entire race doing this," Turles told him. "What we are doing is taking back the Universe. Our people on Planet Vegeta are far too docile and timorous to even think about planning on Freeza's downfall."

"B-But…I'm a scientist! I-I can even help you in your endeavors."

Turles and Kakarot looked at one another before laughing. If they really didn't have anyone on the outside to help them out, then they would have taken Malaka in without a doubt, but unfortunately for the doctor, such wasn't the case.

"What a waste of last words."

The two Saiyans stood side by side with their hands aimed right for him. All Malaka could do was close his eyes and accept his fate.

With one of Freeza's bases attacked, many more would be on alert, meaning more enemies to overcome. This would only aid in the both of them becoming stronger before they could truly face Freeza.

At least that's what Turles had in mind.


	27. Double Set Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raditz takes action. Freeza gets problem after problem. King Vegeta has to solve it. So Bardock now has to help carry out action in Freeza's name.

**Dragon Ball Governed:**

**Chapter 27**

**"Double Set Back"**

* * *

Freeza was as idle as a statue. While naturally capable at masking his rage and disappointment, his subordinates still had a deep hunch whenever their lord wasn't feeling all too joyous.

Beriblu, Dodoria, Kikono, Raditz, and Zarbon. Six different people were in one room and not a single sound came from anyone. They remained as still as their lord, with their narrow, blank gaze fixated on Freeza's back. Silence was at such an all time high that everyone of them could faintly hear the engine of Freeza's ship traversing through space.

Subsequent to getting news of one of his biggest base of operations being unexpectedly attacked, Freeza gave the order of having reinforcements being sent out without a second thought. However, as soon as the men got to their destination, the planet was nowhere to be seen.

Not once during Freeza's tenure as the Universal emperor, did something like did transpire. He also knew that nothing even remotely synonymous to this unwanted incident would ever take place under his father's supervision while he was in power. So for something like this to take place under his rule was a downright peg to his legendary status - or so he felt.

Freeza's subjects didn't do as much as breathe too hard while in his presence.

Feeling that he would be able to keep his composure and not lash out while speaking, Freeza's hoverchair did a 180. With his front facing his subjects, all made sure to adjust their posture. "I want a report of every single last ship that has been recorded even remotely near the coordinates of Freeza Planet 33."

Kikono didn't say a single word and left a second later after the order was given. BeriBlu made sure to follow his lead.

With the exit of Kikono and BeriBlu, there only remained Dodoria, Raditz, and Zarbon. "And I want the three of you to head over to the base of operations closest to what used to be Freeza Planet 33. If they intend on being unremitting, then we can expect them to be within the same star field."

"With all due respect, my lord," Zarbon started, "but Dodoria and I can easily take care of the problem ourselves. We don't downplay Raditz with his strength, but having him by our side isn't necessary."

Raditz stared bullets at Zarbon and Dodoria. Neither of the two looked back, but he knew that they knew that he was looking dead at them. Freeza observed the heated look on the Saiyan's face. It was very easy to note that Raditz felt insulted by Zarbon's words.

"I'm not having any of that," Freeza told Zarbon. "I gave you an order, so you do as I demand of you. Or do I need to help you with your memory with forgetting such elementary procedure?"

Zarbon got the message and frantically shook his head. "Of course not, sire." He bowed before him. "We will do as you wish."

As Zarbon and Dodoria turn around to make their leave, Raditz is right behind them. It was just as he figured, the both of them didn't truly believe in Raditz's place here under Freeza's wing. All of these years of conducting themselves cordially while in Freeza's presence was nothing more than a brown nosing facade. They showed him this once already back on Planet Dip and they just did it once again here. Dodoria and Zarbon were no different then the others with their gracious attitude that concealed their genuine envy. Maybe they felt like he didn't belong, and maybe they felt like he was inferior in a way.

The son of Bardock just kept his mouth shut. If they wanted to try and keep him down, they could try all they want because as far as Raditz was concerned, it'd no longer be for long. "Hehe…"

As they're walking, Raditz notes how they are fixing to pass up the messing hall. He stops by the entrance and heads inside the messing hall. Given that they were paying so little attention to him to begin with, Raditz figured that his momentary absence would go unnoticed long enough for him to carry out his idea.

As Dodoria and Zarbon make it out to the departure site, they look over the readied ships available to them. Both had the choice of entering a single attack pod or entering a small ship capable of fitting a few handful of people at a time.

"Which do we take?" Dodoria asked.

"I don't feel like being cooped up in a little ball during the trip," Zarbon answered.

Dodoria crossed his arms and nodded in agreement. "But what about Raditz? Having him around would be a nuisance - I mean - it's enough dealing with you, hehe."

"Haha," Zarbon rolled his eyes, "very funny."

"So?" Dodoria prodded, wanting an answer.

"We'll both take the bigger ship and just let Raditz ride along in an attack ball. If he doesn't like it, then that's just too bad."

"Ha, good." Dodoria was quick to hop on top of the ship. Just before entering down the little hole below, he got a glimpse of Raditz finally managing to catch up. "Well, look who made it just in time."

The first thing Zarbon scrutinized upon turning around was the single bag that Raditz had in his hand. Zarbon got to rubbing his temple and sighing. "If you were going to get rations, why didn't you think of Dodoria and I?"

"Must have slipped my mind," Raditz shrugged nonchalantly.

Dodoria hopped back down to see what was going on. "What's the hold up?"

"This clown went to the messing hall to get rations and forgot to get some for all of us."

A few times it's happened to him as well, so he saw nothing bad in it. "It must have slipped his mind," Dodoria said.

"See?" Raditz muttered.

Zarbon ignored Raditz and smacked his lips. "Very well, we'll just go get our own food." Zarbon pointed to the attack ball. "Before something slips my mind, that attack ball is your form of transportation. Dodoria and I will be in the bigger ship, alright?"

"Fine by me."

Raditz walked ahead between Dodoria and Zarbon and turned around prior to placing his back against the leg of the ship that those two were set to take-off in. As soon as they made a curving turn in the corridors, Raditz got right to business.

He hopped on top of their ship, went inside, and dashed straight into the cockpit of the spacecraft. "Idiots. Since they're going to be riding in manually, it means that they'll be heading through the quicker pathway." Raditz looked over all the buttons and labels on the deck of the ship. "They'll more than likely encounter meteor showers and in order to make way through there safely, they'll need functioning blasters."

So the first thing Raditz does is remove the covering of the blasters button and clips the wires. He sets the plating back on top and quickly thinks out loud as to what else he can do.

"Also...the back up generators…"

With his ingenious mischievous thoughts, Raditz couldn't help but cackle menacingly.

* * *

Subsequent to the take-off, Raditz's ship fires away into a slightly different direction than that of Dodoria and Zarbon's. As big as Dodoria's belly was, one would think that him getting stuffed was virtually impossible, but the way he ate proved otherwise. With chocolate leftover on his lips and crumbs all in his lap, the man let out a huge belch.

Zarbon, aggravated, got up from his seat while waving his hand back and forth to prevent the odor from rearing its smelly self up his nostrils.

"My bad," Dodoria said through fits of laughter.

"And this is another reason why I didn't want that Saiyan travelling along with us." With his eyes steady on the window, he could barely make out some floating rocks from afar. He was quick to snap his fingers in order to get Dodoria's attention. "Hurry up and shift the spacecraft to autopilot."

As bloated as his stomach was, Dodoria surprisingly got up on his feet and shifted the stick of the spacecraft prior to pressing a button. The engine of the ship calmed down, with a heap of gas coming out.

Zarbon locked onto the rocks in the area. Once they were within range, he pressed the button. After the click, he expected to see one of the rocks exploding to absolute bits. Yet nothing happened. With a look of confusion, Zarbom turned back over to Dodoria. The pink guy had a feeling that something was wrong, but he just hoped it wasn't what he thought it could have been. "What's going on?"

Zarbon tried pressing the button again, though to no avail. After clicking it ten times in the matter of three seconds, his eyes grew wide. "The blasters are malfunctioning. We need to turn around no-"

But the first rock grazing against the ship had the two stumbling back like mad men putting on a circus act.

"We're too late!" Dodoria yelled. He had his fat fingers clutched tightly on one of the seats.

"Try anyway, god damn it!"

Both their worlds went into a swirl as the next shocking hit against their ship sent Dodoria and Zarbon spinning onto the floor. Attempts to getting back on their feet were futile. Not one single second went by without their ship having an undesired collision with hundreds of meteros.

The ship's plating was being chipped off in great chunks with every graze. Complete contact put irremediable dents in the ship, one of which knocked Dodoria back against the wall with so much force that he tore through the other wall.

Zarbon eyes went wide. Dodoria tried to scream but he was immediately shut up once out in the vacuum of space.

Dodoria made the silly mistake of trying to hold his breath, which only ended his life quicker.

Zarbon, in a last ditch effort, clicked the scouter over his left eye while he still had some oxygen left. "Lord Freeza, Lord Freeza!"

Every time he was in a rock and a hard place, Zarbon could always go to Freeza. He'd cooly take action to resolve any potential problem or be the one to give intelligible advice for solutions. This was one of those moments.

The scouter pipped right back. Freeza, unaware of the situation, answers his two subordinates in a casual manner, all calm like. " _Hello, Zarbon. Trip going well, I assume?"_

"As a matter of fact, no!" Another bang against the ship sent him sliding to the wall, eliciting a pained groan. "S-Sire, we're in dire need of help! Dodoria and I are trapped, can yo-"

Expecting an answer, Freeza spoke hello into the scouter, though he quickly came to the realization that the reception had been cut off. This was really intriguing to him, but most definitely not in a good way. Could it have been that his two men may have been attacked by the same persons to destroy one of his bases of operations?

Whatever did happen, Freeza was not pleased. "Not once did Zarbon mention Raditz, so perhaps he travelled in a different ship?" Deciding to find out, Freeza clicked his scouter. "Raditz? Are you there."

Raditz was quick to answer back. " _Here, Lord Freeza."_

Freeza would never admit it out loud, though he was relieved to find out that the young Saiyan was in good condition. "Did you travel with Dodoria and Zarbon?"

This question was all Raditz needed to know in order to come to the realization that his plan came to actual fruition. So bad, the man wanted to laugh but with Freeza on the other end, Raditz kept his cool and put on an act. " _Actually, no. Zarbon was putting up a big deal about travelling separate so they opted for me to go ahead in an attack ball while they went along in a multiple holding ship_."

Freeza was silent for the moment. While he wanted to say that Raditz was up to something, such was very characteristic of Zarbon. Despite the act he put up of appearing to be fond of Raditz, he could read his own right hand men like they were books he's read once a week for the past 30 years; he knew them better then they knew themselves so he didn't see much reason for Raditz to be lying. But then again...he remembered something, something that made his suspicions spike dramatically. "They more than likely got caught up in a meteor shower, then," Freeza concluded.

"Wait, what happened?"

Freeza sighed. "Just another farcical incident that you need not fret over at this very moment. Whenever you have finished your assignment, we will discuss matters when you come back."

"Yes, sire."

After Freeza ended the call, Raditz's knees came right up as his head went back. Booming laughter escaped his wide mouth. He contributed to the death of Zarbon and Dodoria and actually got away with it!

"Ahahahahaha, this is glorious! What a better way of getting myself to the top of Freeza's ranks as the most capable solider! Abo, Kado, and the Ginyus…" Raditz's body shook as he laughed. "None of them will see me coming, bwahaahahahahahaa!"

* * *

It's just one thing after another at this point. For one, the entire plan he had with the inhabitants of Planet Zoon goes to crap. Now, an entire planet that keeps track of a shitload of records gets destroyed and no single trace from there is left - not one. And after this, two top men of his get killed in a meteor shower? Just what in the hell could happen next?

Once the doors from behind opened, Freeza's chair turned around. Seeing Kikono and Beriblu brought a bit of light to his face. "I trust that the both of you have some good news for me?"

"We've come to learn that the ship that attacked the base of operations on Freeza Planet 33 came from Planet Vegeta, though it's been years since either of those two pods have ever routed back home."

"This has led us to assume that whoever has attacked the planet has gone rogue," Beriblu finished.

"So it can't be the entire Saiyan race making some elaborate plan in trying to overthrow me, no?"

"They're not that stupid, Lord Freeza," Kikono reassured his lord.

Taking in a deep breath, Freeza closed his eyes and dismissed both advisors. "Very well, then. Off to Planet Vegeta, we go."

* * *

"Not bad, kid. You actually made it back home safe and sound."

Those 12 words made Taro's heart swell up in pride. Throughout their campaign, Pumbukin was the most encouraging. When Taro was performing poorly, the big man was there to lift his spirits and tell him to keep fighting on. Whenever he was doing well, Pumbukin would comment on how he loves what he's seeing.

Toteppo wasn't one for words but he gave the kid a nod of approval after their most recent mission.

Bardock wasn't one for words either as he preferred action. Despite Pumbukin being uplifting as he was, he appreciated Bardock the most because whenever the kid got in a bad predicament, the scarred warrior would be right there to save him and bail him out. Even after it was all said and done, Bardock would tell him what he did wrong and what he could have done right for future reference.

Though he didn't realize this yet, getting advice from someone of Bardock's caliber meant a lot. It would probably help his tenure as a combatant much later on as he grew.

"Keep it up and you just might get promoted one day," Bardock told him. "So whatever it is you're doing, don't change a damn thing."

Once on the edge of the departure site, Taro raised his fist up. "Thanks so much, guys! I'll be forever grateful."

Toteppo gave him a thumbs up before the three took off toward the Saiyan palace.

"We should be getting a good sum for the work we just put in," Pumbukin told his comrades as they flew toward the Saiyan palace.

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Bardock told him.

By the time that they got back to the Saiyan palace, their only sights were on King Vegeta. The man's eyes widened with a bit of anticipation once he caught a glimpse of them. It was as if he had been expecting the trio for some time now.

Once the three got close enough to where they could be heard, they all bowed on one knee with their fists toward their chest. "Seeing you all back here in one piece makes my job just a bit easier. Everything went well?"

"Oh, yes, it did," Pumbukin told him. "It went more than well, to be exact, your majesty - almost perfect."

"That's great to hear," King Vegeta spoke. "Seeing that you two already have such a high momentum going, I see there would be no harm in bringing you all out back for another assignment, would it?"

Bardock had to hide a growl. He hated it when King Vegeta did this. After a handful of missions, Bardock just hoped that he could get some rest and stay home for a while. If Gine was still alive, he'd have made his frustrations known by now for he would have someone home expecting to see him.

Bardock looked up to the King. Out of the very corner of his eye, he noted a big smirk plastered on Selypa's face. She more than likely figured out that her child had did well judging by how Pumbukin spoke well of their missions. He was actually glad to have done a favor in helping a young promising soldier in reaching his potential.

"And what might that be, your majesty?" the scarred warrior asked.

"I know not if you are aware, but there's been a recent attack on one of Freeza's base of operations. After everyone was slaughtered, the entire planet had been destroyed. He just recently came here in hopes that I would be the one to aid in resolving of our current nuisance."

A mission for Freeza? One of his bases? Bardock didn't like it. "With all due respect, sire, but what happens to Freeza has nothing to do with us. He could easily have one of his men handle the problem."

Getting up from his throne, King Vegeta's eyes narrowed. "Me doing this is me proving to Freeza that I am not meddling with the two rogue Saiyans that have been messing up his business. We see the base they're en route to next is very close to us and there's no better opportunity than for us to show to him that we're still loyal than now. The three of you will be expected to arrive there ten minutes after they land."

As if on cue, two different soldiers stepped out of line. "Two of my current top soldiers, Evid, and Amaran will be accompanying you on your mission. With them by your side, we expect things to run along smoothly."

It had been a while since Evid got to see some action and Bardock could tell because the Saiyan was trying his hardest to remove himself of the shit-eating grin he had plastered over his burned face. As for the other Saiyan, Amaran, he just so happened to be one of the first mid-class Saiyans to be promoted while under King Vegeta The Third's rule. He and Zorn were very close and he was no slouch when it came to the battle-field, either.

For some reason, Bardock had a very uneasy feeling about this mission.

And it wasn't because of Amaran and his bond with Zorn, either.


	28. The Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot finally learns the truth.

**Dragon Ball Governed:**

**Chapter 28**

**"The Truth"**

* * *

A spacious environment surrounded by giant rock pillars providing shade under the hot sun of Planet Vegeta was the perfect training spot for two skilled combatants.

Since Zima was unable to use the Super Saibaimen he had gotten off Nappa, he had been taking some of his adult peer's Saibaimen without their permission and using them to train. It wasn't as if they'd ever notice though since they were too blockheaded.

Zima hopped off one pillar, dodging an acid attack from one of the Saibaimen and used the momentum he had built up by running to dash forth. The Saibaimen's red eyes nearly popped out of its eye sockets as he saw its shoulders when its head was flying off and sent rolling on the ground.

Shifting his body around, Zima had his hand directed for the only other sentient being there.

Choy put his hands up as fast as a petty thief caught by swat. "Whoah, whoah, whoah! I'm the only one left here."

Zima smiled and put his hand down. "I know - was just testing my reflexes."

"You did great against those things," Choy commended. "Too bad they were the weaker versions, though."

"Too bad?" Zima scoffed. "Do you know any other person our age group capable of even beating the weakest version of those green beans?"

Come to think of it, Choy wasn't able to think of any name. "Nope."

"Yeah, I thought so."

"So, did you hear about one of Freeza's planets being attacked?"

"Attacked? When?"

"My dad told me that there is a rogue Saiyan out there on the loose attacking Freeza's base of operations. They already destroyed one Planet and they're attacking another right now as we speak. King Vegeta's sent a squad of men to go and handle the problem."

This was far more interesting than anything else for Zima in the past decade. "And of this squad, does Mister Bardock happen to be one of them?"

Choy nodded his head.

"That's all I needed to know."

* * *

Very rare that Saiyans nowadays fought one another to the death. If one was found out for treason, they'de be sent straight to the King, who'd make a fine example out of the treacherous individual before his citizens. In a race of warriors, killing one's own kind wasn't something they could afford for the simple reason that there were only thousands of Saiyans on the Planet. As a intergalactic mercenary race, they didn't have much time for reproducing; there were planets half the size of Planet Vegeta with millions upon millions of people.

"Now thanks to this rogue idiot, Lord Freeza's probably thinking that the entire Saiyan race is against him," Pumbukin snarled. "What a way for a pair of nobodies to try and ruin a good thing for us."

"The only way we rectify this little problem is by bringing the heads of those who would dare and try to spoil all the good for us," Evid told Pumbukin through the scouter.

"Agreed," Amaran seconded. "If we were to sit back and let whoever is doing this do as they please, then Lord Freeza would have all the right to believe we're behind this, though if we're to step up and show him that we are willing to kill the man or men who is hellbent on ruining what he has going on, then all should be well between he and us."

There was one Saiyan that didn't necessarily agree with them— Bardock. The way he saw it, Freeza could by now be easily persuaded into thinking that King Vegeta sending out his troops to nip the problem in the bud would be a mere cover up. Despite the fact that the Saiyans truly were not behind this unexpected attack, Bardock knew that those in power often thought of all possible angles - most of those stemming from paranoia.

"We'll see," was all the scarred warrior had to say as they made way to their destination.

* * *

With their increased powers, Turles and Kakarot's campaign on Freeza Planet 28 was much easier compared to the one on Freeza Planet 33. With courtesy to the late Tagoma, Kakarot and Turles found their increased power to be a big help. Not a single soul that had been touched by either their fists or chi attacks managed to get back up and flee or retaliate.

One blow was all they needed.

High on a mountain was Freeza's base of operations. The building was burning up and smoke and the sounds of people screaming for mercy as they were being burned alive rang through the heavens.

This was nothing short of normal for the two rogue Saiyans, though.

One man, who's clothing was burning, tried his best to remain quiet. The fire tore at his flesh but by even squealing, he'd have given himself away. He went over to the edge of the mountain where he knew a big pond was down below. If he could just get down there and extinguish the fire, he'd probably be alive to live another day.

With half of his body over the edge, he prepared to throw himself off.

Kakarot's boot rammed against his spine elicited a yell. "That water must look like a heaven to you."

The defenseless person could no longer muster the strength to speak at this point. As the fire had torn through his clothes, it reached into the very bone of his skin, shocking his nervous system.

Gasps and wheezes was the only thing he could muster up.

Feigning disappointment over the fact that the victim wasn't able to respond verbally, Kakarot pouted. "Pity. At the very least, I can do you a favor." He removed the boot from the man's spine and kicked him over. Slowly, Kakarot's eyes went down as he watched the man fall.

Knowing he was hoping to go into the pond, Kakarot purposely kicked the man just a little bit too hard. Seeing his crisp body just on the edge of pond, the Saiyan chuckled to himself.

With a bright flash zooming right past the corner of his eye, Kakarot turned to see four more doing the exact same. The young warrior felt five different life forces as well, so he knew without a doubt that these were more than likely reinforcements.

"We have company!"

Turles put down a female's limp body and walked over to his subordinate. Kakarot pointed out into the sky and showed Turles four falling ships. "See?"

Turles cracked his knuckles. "Well, I shall say that it's about time."

"You and I will be able to take care of them without a problem."

Turles grabbed Kakarot by the shoulder and pointed him in the opposite direction. "I'll be the one to meet up with them over there before they come to us - ruin their potential element of surprise. You stay here and take care of any survivors remaining. Remember: we don't leave a single trace alive before we get rid of this barren wasteland for good."

Kakarot clenched his fists. "But we can get this done faster and beat them before they send in more reinforcements!" He started to wag his tail back and forth. "We can take them!"

"You stay here," Turles told him firmly. "That is an order, boy."

Feeling the powers from all five of these individuals had Kakarot all excited. Sure, they didn't measure up individually to Tagoma, but together, they would offer up a great deal of fun. Turles observed the growing anticipation by how Kakarot's tail wagged like an impatient puppy. He still had to learn some form of control.

Kakarot started to take off but Turles grabbed him by the tail and tossed him back. Kakarot went crashing into a pile of stacked bodies. He quickly got up, tensing his muscles, and ready to power-up. Turles had his finger raised. "You have one more time to defy me, Kakarot. I don't know what's gotten into you lately, but maybe I need to instill some form of discipline in you. Do NOT test me."

Turles didn't do as much as give Kakarot the chance to retort. The dark-skinned Saiyan was gone in an instant.

Right then and there, Kakarot knew he could have powered up and bested his mentor, but he didn't have the heart to retaliate. Without Turles, he'd be nothing.

Taking in deep breaths, Kakarot's look of anger faltered. The 16 year old was just disappointed at this point, but what could he do, really? He turned around and kicked one of the dead bodies in frustration. "Stupid...just stupid."

Freeza Planet 28 was a bright pink planet with trees hundreds of feet tall everywhere, which would explain why he carried his main base on the tallest mountain on the planet. Despite the sizes, the space between each tree was wide, so the five Saiyans managed to land safely.

No later than touching down, every single one of them clicked on their scouters so that they could get indications of power-levels.

**Pip**

"Yo, something must be out of whack with this thing!" Pumbukin shouted. He snatched his own scouter from his left eye and began to closely examine it. "I just got a reading of 15,000."

"No, there's no mistake there," Totapo told his friend. "I have the same reading."

"As do I," Bardock confirmed.

"There's nothing to worry about," Evid told his peers confidently. "A power-level of 15,000 is nothing against us once we take change under a full moon."

For as long as he didn't get a decent fight, it's been twice as long since Evid got the chance to turn into an Oozaru.

"If our enemy wasn't a Saiyan himself…" Amaran spoke out.

Getting a good look at this rogue Saiyan was like looking at the spitting image of Bardock - if he spent a little bit too much of his time near the sun.

Seeing the five Saiyans, Turles was the first to speak. "Well, I'll be damned. Freeza really resorted to having Saiyans take care of the situation instead of getting more of his own trusted goons. The irony here is far too coincidental that I'll even say there's a higher power to all this." He chuckled.

"What the hell?" Pumbukin's head swayed back and forth from Bardock to Turles so hard that it was a miracle he didn't give himself a bad case of whiplash. "He looks just like you!"

"Way to go, captain obvious," Amaran said.

Looking at Turles felt weird. Bardock went as far as to think that this could be his son, Kakarot, but he figured that a young sixteen year old Saiyan wouldn't be this well built yet. Judging by his physical appearance, he was much older. He couldn't be his son.

But if what his supposed brother Dane said were true...then this would have to be…"Turles…"

Hearing his name spoken from the mouth of the only brother that never knew him put a smile to Turles' face. "Nice to see that you at least know my name."

"So you do know this guy?" Amaran asked him. "What's the relation between you two?"

Turles shook his head. "Oh, nothing, beside the fact that we are brothers, we have no genuine relation. He's the opposition just as much as you both are."

"Before we put your head on a stake, would you bother in informing us why it is that you seek to destroy Freeza's main bases?"

"What comes to ashes inevitably leads to a rebirth," Turles told Amaran. "Once I have Freeza's empire crumbling, I will be the one there to replace him and the entire Saiyan race will be my soldiers to lead. Unfortunately, none of you will be alive to witness glory in its purest essence."

"Bullshit!" Pumbukin spat. "You're just another lower-class Saiyan! The idea of leading Freeza's empire, much less King Vegeta's people, shouldn't even be running around in your head, boy! It's about time you learn some manners."

Pumbukin began running over to Turles as fast as he could - his heavy legs and giant feet kicking up dust with each step. Turles remained idle and observed Pumbukin as he came toward him. Just seeing how the short, chubby guy ran forced a snicker out of him. Moving himself to the side, Turles snatched Pumbukin's scouter from his left eye and tripped him by the ankle. Just as Pumbukin began to fall, Turles grabbed him by the tail and gave a tight squeeze.

"You fool, that doesn't work on me!" Pumbukin howled, swinging his fists angrily.

Turles let Pumbukin go and used his speed to get out of the way. He nor the others were able to keep up with Turles and spent a few seconds looking around before their scouters detected the Saiyan to be just behind them.

"6,750...6,990...7,500...8,168...9,189…" Once he got their readings, Turles removed the scouter from his face and crushed it in the palm of his hand. "So you're King Vegeta's top men. I must say it's a pleasure for him to send the elite of the classified mid-level soldiers."

Pumbukin's face was hot red after getting back up. "This must be some sort of fluke - he's some nobody with a power-level of 15,000! That reading can't be real…"

"You really don't believe me?" Turles asked him.

Bardock knew his comrade better than most and could see whenever rage started to build up in his chubby friend, there was almost no stopping him. "Calm down, Pumbukin - keep a cool head. Our best chance of beating this guy is by taking him on at once."

Pumbukin tuned out the words of the others and only listened in on Turles. "You're damn right I don't believe you!"

Turles moved his chin up to beckon Pumbukin. "Well, why don't you come and try me?"

Pumbukin hopped off his back-foot with his hands interlocked and behind his head. Bardock tried to step in, but was held back by Amaran. He looked dead in the man's eyes and he shook his head. "Natural selection; we let the weak links go before we form our strongest chain."

Bardock wasn't buying that but making an effort to resist Amaran would result in utter failure and a potential fight between his own group. As much as he didn't agree with this stupid survival of the fittest survival, there was nothing he could do for Pumbukin right now.

Turles moved his entire upper-body to the side and allowed Pumbukin to just graze his chest-plate. He span around behind the chubby Saiyan and spoke to him. "Over here." Pumbukin quickly turned around and made an attempt to fire at him from point-blank range. The ki attack was deflected before it even left the palm of his hands. Pumbukin paid for it dearly with his stomach rumbling out loud due to a merciless front kick to the gut.

Pumbukin hopped off his back, landed on his feet, and zeroed in on Turles once more. He blocked Pumbukin's elbow strike with his forearm, ducked under a swipe, and used his left hand while ducking to direct his right shoulder upward so a kick from Pumbukin wouldn't make contact. Turles sprung off his left hand and over the shoulder of Pumbukin, who turned around again for a punch.

Turles was ready for it. He grabbed Pumbukin's wrist, twisted it and applied so much pressure that he sent Pumbukin down on one knee. As he did so, he looked in the eyes of the other four Saiyans. "See how easily I can make one of my own bow? Willingly or unwillingly, once I take control, everyone will kneel with Turles in their presence."

With his finger against Pumbukin's windpipe, he ensured that the Saiyan could no longer breathe. Pumbukin dropped dead before his comrades. His body twitched with wide eyes like a fish on shore flopping around for water.

"And those who perpetuate defiance shall die. So that leads me with this question: will you care to join me and my cause? I'm only being generous enough to offer once."

As if he was some working engineer on Planet Vegeta, Pumbukin had been killed like common trash. Bardock, seeing that nobody was any longer in his way, shot forth for Turles. Totapo was equally upset at his comrade's death and had been quick to follow in pursuit from behind. Evid, anxious to fight, hopped in as well.

Amaran watched as Turles seemed to struggle with just the four of him and noticed how quick he was to making sure that only two stayed on his trail. Three or more and he was in trouble. "Maybe we'll be able to take him down after all." Amaran then jumped in.

"Are you getting this reading!?"

Zima clicked on his scouter once he exited his attack pod. He could see a multitude of power-levels over 6,000 facing off against one with 15,000. Just as expected, the fight had begun before they were to land here, meaning that those in combat would be too distracted to notice two unexpected and unwanted arrivals.

"Yeah, I'm getting it."

Choy was taken aback by the fact that Saiyans were actually fighting together in an effort to take down another Saiyan - and top soldiers of the mid-class level at that. Whoever this guy was, he must have been one of the top soldiers of the past.

"I'm also getting another reading not too far from here: a power-level of 13,250."

"The reading isn't the same league as the other guy but he's still crazy strong, too."

Zima nodded. "Not to mention, he's far away from the fight taking place, so I would have to assume that he's maybe an ace in the hole - in hiding until last moment to catch the others off-guard."

"What do we do?" Choy asked.

"We see what he's up to."

The two young warriors take off like rockets. Choy was excited to see how all of this would play out, though Zima on the other hand was more interested in the faces involved in this, as well as Bardock.

"He really has me doing maiden services."

Kakarot kicked another body onto the 30th pile of bodies that he had made on the mountain. "That should be the last of it." Backing up away from the hundreds of bodies stacked, Kakarot sent thirty different blasts to set them all up ablaze. "Now maybe I should be able to join the fight."

Closing his eyes, Kakarot felt out for the powers that collided. He knew that one of the soldiers sent there had died due to his life force dropping all the way down to zero. The other four had dropped as well, though only slightly, so they must have been weakened and still able to fight.

"Turles could have been taken those four out by now but he's just toying with them." Kakarot licked his lips. "Maybe he's playing with food that he's saved for me."

He had made sure that there were no survivors, so now he could join the battle that Turles was having all the fun with. The young warrior was so focused on entering the battle, that he hadn't noticed the two smaller power-levels following him.

The cool breeze was slapping Kakarot so hard in the face that it's of a surprise his hair hadn't been detached from his head. He flew so fast that he was within the battle-zone in just a matter of seconds.

Kakarot stopped right in the sky to observe the fight. So far there are only two warriors facing off against Turles: Amaran and Evid. Both are sweaty and bloodied but their relentless attitude is what's kept them in the fight so far.

Seeing the other two still alive, Kakarot could see one dark-skinned male writhing in pain silently as the other soldier was trying all he could to get right back up on his feet.

This was so like Turles, beating his enemy's down to within an inch of their lives before killing them. Of course, he only did this to those he felt were worthy of giving him some form of entertainment.

Kakarot was on the verge of opening his mouth to make himself known, but once one of the fallen soldiers lifted their heads up, he got a good look at their face. Kakarot didn't think anything of the hair at all. If Turles and his were similar, then he figured that there would be someone else out there, too.

But it wasn't until he saw the scar on the man's face that he realized.

It had been years since he last seen that face.

Kakarot spoke so low that he wasn't even capable of sounding out the words. "Father…"

As Bardock is about to stand up, Totapo is the one to push him back down by placing his boot on Bardock's back. "Stay put and rest."

Amaran and Evid both came crashing down within the same vicinity of one another. Turles was barely breaking a sweat as he spent most his time dodging and toying with them all. Seeing Totapo back on his feet, he chortled. "I love the tenacity. That's what makes killing you all the more worthwhile. You fight like Saiyan warriors are meant to: till your body caves in."

Kakarot wished Turles would get on with it and at least kill his father before he jumped in. He never had problems with ruining families and entire civilizations, but Kakarot just had a twirl session in his stomach at the mere thought of eradicating his father from existence. Yet at the same time, he couldn't even mentally figure out why. It had been approximately twelve years since he last seen his father - just when he was a little kid - so why would he care if he lives or dies?

Amaran tried to get up, but to no avail as as he dropped back down on his chin, letting out a deep breath before falling to unconsciousness.

Evid, despite being weaker than Amaran, finds the strength to stand up on his two feet. He reveals his bloody teeth with a wide smile as it's only he and Totapo standing beside one another. "The more and more that I last, the more stronger I shall become. That's the only reason I keep fighting. You can beat me and humiliate me, but you won't take away my pride through embarrassing me in battle, for if I can survive this long, then you've done a shit job at killing me."

Evid flies for Turles once more and Totapo is just right behind him.

Turles clenches his fist and awaits them to get close. Once within striking range, he clocks Evid across the face and gut-checks Totapo. The two Saiyans double over and spit up saliva. Subsequent to upper-cutting them both at the same time, he grabs the two Saiyans by the legs and slams them together before chucking them down for Bardock right below.

The scarred warrior can only stare and watch as they both fall down gracefully. Just ten meters above his head, the two are rendered chi waves with enough force to disintegrate them.

Bardock could feel their ashes fall on his hair and back. Angry at the fact he couldn't save three men today, what only angered him more was the fact that it was about to be five: another soldier and himself.

Turles touched down a few meters away from Bardock and just looked down on the man. Bardock was slow to get up, but he did...eventually. Turles couldn't help but clap. Bardock pushed through the pain and rose up, mustering up what little strength he had left. "You deserve a round of applause for being able to still get back up after the ruthless pounding you've endured."

"Turles…" Bardock growled. The attempt in trying to take a single step forward resulted in Bardock groaning as he fell down onto one knee. He used his right hand to keep his balance. While huffing and puffing, sweating as if he was mere centimeters away from the sun, Bardock looked back up to him.

"I didn't even have to touch you and I still made you bow. Do you understand now...brother?"

"Gine...she told me about you, right before she died." Slowly, Bardock stood back up on his two feet. He and Turles were virtually the same height.

"Gine?" Turles scratched his head. As he continued to feign deep thought, he turned around and began rubbing his chin as he tapped his face with his thumb. "Ah, yes!" He snapped his fingers prior to facing Bardock again. "Your mate. I did have a pleasure speaking to her before her untimely accident."

"W-What? H-How'd you know?" Bardock kept that under wraps for as long as he could remember. Once Gumeel got busted, only a few more figured out why her child was taken away from her, but still, an outsider like Turles wouldn't have to know of Gine's death.

Unless…

"You!" Bardock punched Turles across the face. At the very most, he managed to move him a few inches, but nothing more. However, the impact wasn't even remotely enough to force Turles to break eye-contact.

"That's right - me." He chuckled. "It was I who misinformed her on the planet where her little son had supposedly been on." All the memories flooding back to Bardock's mind was apparent. Despite this happening over a decade ago, it felt like yesterday. "I'm sure you decided to go and check on her, correct? Did you get to see her dead body? Just how badly did those vicious beasts treat her before she was put out of her misery? Did she even get to talk to you one last time."

"You coward!"

Bardock doubled over from a quick shot to the gut before he was grabbed by the throat and lifted off his feet. The scarred warrior tried to grab for Turles' face but said Saiyan would just smack away Bardock's hand every time he tried.

"That's right. I set the whole thing up. From the very beginning, it was all apart of my plan to recruit a Saiyan child to mold them into the warrior necessary to be apart of my plan. I couldn't do this to any child, though. Every kid I tried to go to were lower-class soldiers, like me, but most were killed by the Galactic Patrol before I got a chance to get to them. When I got news of your whereabouts, I figured I could use one of your children, but the eldest was far too promising. But Kakarot...oh, he was just the perfect fit. Him and I baring a strong resemblance was just what I needed to reel him in without suspicion."

No longer was Bardock getting any air through his nose or mouth. With each and every passing second, Turles strengthened his grip.

"I just needed a Saiyan by my side so that I could use them as a scapegoat for my journey. Luckily for your child, he's proven to be so valuable that I don't think I'll be needing any other subordinates. Fret not; Kakarot doesn't know and he never will. When I dispatch of you, I'll gladly go back to being the father you never could be - scum."

Bardock used his tail to grab at Turles' free hand and reeled it in for a big bite. The sudden pain caused Turles to remove his hand from Bardock's throat. After falling on his knees, he was kicked right on his back.

Turles raised his right hand, beginning to generate energy in the palm of his hands. "That's right, Bardock. Till the very end." He extended his hand over to the ground beside him and launched the blast to create a hole about twice the size of Bardock's body. "And because you are my brother, I will give you a half decent burial."

Kakarot knew better than any other that when Turles promised death on someone, he never turned back on his word. The sixteen year old warrior shot down on the ground with enough force to bring attention to himself.

"Kakarot!" Turles yelled happily. "I'm glad you could arrive for the glorious finale."

"As am I," he responded. "Too bad it won't be my father who ends up in the grave you created."

Turles turned away from Bardock and tilted his head. "I beg your pardon?"

"You've done well in saving me the time in digging up your grave."

Turles' furrowed brow lowered and he raised his head, looking Kakarot dead on in the eyes. His most and only promising soldier had switched sides on him. It wasn't hard for him to figure it out: he had heard in on the conversation.

"Surely you aren't going to be one of the many idiots of this world to betray the only person who's been looking out for you based on the past. It'd be very unwise for you to do so, Kakarot."

"The sad part about it all is that you could have told me this when I was a kid and still probably have convinced me to fight along with you - back when I was most gullible."

Kakarot knew that a part of him still was, but who would he be to turn his back on the person who's practically raised him? He didn't as much as have a reason back then, but now…

Now he had one.

"I can still convince you now, Kakarot. All hope isn't lost yet. Finish what I've started by killing this weakling and we can move on to better things."

Kakarot looked to Bardock as the man just witnessed everything going on. Now that he learned the truth, Kakarot would be a fool if he killed his biological father. For all these years he was lied to and used as a mere means to an end.

"Sorry, I've made up my mind."

"So you've also sealed your fate," Turles corrected. "You've always been under me, Kakarot so your chances of coming out victorious are slim." He then grinned. "With these senzus, your death will be of no big loss - finding another and more obedient replacement ought to be easy."

"YAH!"

The sound of Kakarot's elbow connecting with Turles' arm was that of a big bang that shooked everything within a dozen mile radius of them. Kakarot felt his chestplate grazed by a punch. The same was very much for Turles when his underling attempted to retaliate.

Getting an open-palm strike to the face wasn't much a set-back for the sixteen year old as he smacked Turles' other arm away and created some form of separation by having Turles soar away due to a kiai push.

Bardock could feel the heavy winds come over him as Turles was sent flying just above his head. Kakarot had followed after just mere seconds after.

With the period of time he didn't have to suffer much a beating anymore, Bardock was able to slowly get back up on his feet. "Kakarot...I can't believe it."

Bardock knew the reading of Turles' power-level whenever he first came to fight and here his youngest-born was, going blow for blow with the same man who gave him and his comrades absolute hell.

Irritation was on the rise with Turles once he realized that Kakarot wasn't able to be dominated effortlessly as he initially thought. If he would be able to give two punches on the kid, he would come back with two of his own.

On the defensive, Turles focused more on parrying punches and chi attacks as he continued to look for an opening, but that was just as hard to do. After all this time of fighting with Kakarot, the young boy had been paying close attention to his fighting style - Kakarot has learned how to be able to go toe to toe with him evenly without giving himself away easily.

Kakarot's jab was ducked under but he grabbed Turles' right fist just in time to prevent his stomach from receiving a shocking blow. He proceeded to clock Turles in the face but said Saiyan wrapped his tail around Kakarot's legs and tossed the boy down to the ground.

Kakarot was quick to get back up on his feet. Turles was sweating and breathing a bit hard. He really had his work made out for him with fighting his only underling.

"I underestimated you, Kakarot," Turles shouted from afar. "But only ever so slightly! This fight still ends with your demise!"

He then vanished.

Kakarot closed his eyes and took in deep breaths. He could feel Turles' life-force jumping all over the place. He was hopping around in an attempt to throw Kakarot off-guard so he could find an opening. But Kakarot knew this all too well.

The moment Turles appeared behind him with his hands behind his head in hopes of firing away at point-blank range, Kakarot used the tip of his boot to move himself out the way as he simultaneously rammed the tip of his elbow against Turles' stomach.

The younger fighter hoped that his hit would have coerced Turles into cancelling his attack, but to no avail. Kakarot's attempt to dodge was futile since he still ended up getting struck while Turles was hunched over.

Small pieces of Kakarot's armor came off but it didn't do much to pain him. In an effort to maintain balance, the young man executed countless back-flips as if he was an olympian. Hundreds of purple chi attacks came forth, so Kakarot only continued to flip faster, and faster, just being able to dodge them at the last moment.

Getting frustrated, Turles charged for the boy. He hoped to make Kakarot think he was coming right ahead for him before he did a swift maneuver to get behind.

Kakarot expected this and used both his hands to spring himself off the ground last moment. Turles felt as if he was in slow-motion as he watched Kakarot's lips curl up into a smile once they made eye-contact while Kakarot was coming behind.

After Kakarot's feet touched the ground from behind, Turles turned around to fire an attack at close range once more, but Kakarot parried the energy attack behind him. He leaned backward to miss Turles' knuckles. Subsequent to retaliating with a quick and powerful backfist to the face, Turles' saliva came flying involuntarily out of his mouth after also getting an impactful strike to the chin from Kakarot's shoulder.

"How dare you!"

Growing livid at the fact Kakarot was beginning to best him, Turles punched the boy twice in the face and kneed him in the stomach out of sheer rage. Once Kakarot was slow to get back standing straight, Turles used his knee yet again by trying to crack the boy's chin.

Kakarot flipped over on his two feet and sent Turles sliding through the ground with a kiai push to the chest - this time it formed a crack on his armored plate.

Kakarot spat a bit of blood to the ground and wiped his mouth. He took in one deep breath, smiled and spoke to Turles as he got back up. "You didn't underestimate me ever so slightly, Turles. It was honestly the worst mistake of your life."

"Bullshit!" Turles cursed. "I have a power-level of 15,000! You are over fifteen hundred units lower than me! There is no excuse."

"Oh, but there is."

Kakarot clenched his fists. For the first time in his life, Kakarot showed off just how vascular he was - veins beginning to show all over his forearms and biceps, even his neck and forehead. The planet started to quake with the young warrior's growing power.

"W-What are you doing…!?"

Kakarot laughed through the tense sensation tingling throughout this body. "Something I was taught on one of our trips for Senzus - how to control my power!" Kakarot jerked his body up and let out a brief yell. Smoke circled around him quickly before rapidly being blown away.

"You never stood a chance."

Kakarot took off at top speed, building up momentum as he channelled ki through his entire right arm. Turles made an effort to block his face, but Kakarot's elbow broke through his defenses like a hot knife cutting butter. Turles' arms went out wide as did his mouth and eyes from the insane forceful strike.

Kakarot took advantage of the opening blessed before him and sent Turles' head the other way with a strong, beautiful right hook, which was followed by a right open-palm strike to the jaw. By the fourth hit - a fist to the stomach - Turles couldn't help but spit up blood.

Bardock heard cracks from Turles' skull after Kakarot grabbed the man's face by two hands and drove his forehead into Turles'. Subsequent to letting him go, Turles began to stumble back. Each and every strike was given with one hundred percent effort and then some. Just not even being able to stand on his two feet was utterly embarrassing.

Just as Turles was finding his footing, Kakarot hopped off his back-foot and came down with a crushing blow to the temple, one that sent Turles' limp body crashing onto the ground beneath him.

He blacked out, though only for a split second - enough for him to be sent down like an oversized pillar with no holding support.

Down and unable to retaliate in any manner, Turles tried to speak. "K-Kakarot…"

At this point there was nothing Turles could do or say to have Kakarot spare him. Just looking at the man's face made Kakarot want him to destroy the entire planet just so there could be no trace of this conniving, Machiavellian, fool left.

But in moments like these, Turles never begged for his life. Not once, no matter how had the circumstances - Turles wouldn't dare.

Realizing what he was up to, Kakarot looked at Turles' left hand, which was slowly creeping its way into his armored clothing. "No, you don't!" Kakarot raised his hands with his nails out and came down with so much power that it penetrated his armor as well as his chest, to the very heart.

A blast was all that he needed in order to finish him off.

The aftermath was nothing but silence. The wind whistled loudly. A rock dropping from a mile away could be heard.

The scarred warrior was in amazement. The chances of his son, who was destined to be a common lower level Saiyan, turning out to be this strong was impossible.

That little weak boy he saw all those years ago was now a young, powerful force.

Bardock felt pride in himself many times as a young combatant. But to describe the amazing feeling of pride in his own son? That was just indescribable.

Bardock approached Kakarot from behind as his son was down on one knee. The closer he got, the more he could hear his son speaking to himself.

"It's my fault...all of it. I'm the reason that my mother's dead…"

Everything hit Kakarot like a bag of falling bricks. He now understood who Turles truly was. The man he looked up to most even couldn't be trusted — the same man who advised him to not be too trusting.

Bardock put his hand firmly on Kakarot's shoulder to get his attention. "We can't take back what's been done, Kakarot."

Hearing his father speak to him for the first time in over 11 years was an unexpected relief. Kakarot stood up on his two feet and turned around to face the scarred warrior.

"But what if I told you we could?"

"It depends on what you're trying to change. Some things just can't be brought back - it's as simple as that."

Bardock did his mourning. It hurt that Gine was gone, but he's managed to adapt over the years. He had no other choice but to.

Kakarot brushed shoulders with his father as he shook his head. "No, no. That's actually not true." Thinking back on Earth as to how it was said that some orbs could wish for anything, the very first thing that popped into Kakarot's mind was being able to wish for his mistake to be undone - for his mother to be wished back to life. "I can fix what I've done wrong." Kakarot walked back over to his dad. "I can promise you."

"O...kay?" Bardock didn't know what Kakarot was referring to. As far as he was concerned, he righted his wrongs by killing the very man who confessed to being the reason for his mother's demise. He tried to think about what else Kakarot was referring to - like bringing Gine back maybe?

But no. That was just impossible.

"I remember what you told me one night when I was a little boy, just out the nursing capsule."

Bardock cocked his eyebrow. He couldn't even remember, so how could Kakarot?

"What's that?"

"I remember always wanting to go out, chasing the desire for battle, even though I was labeled nothing more than a lower-class working engineer. Despite my status, I had this deep hunger for altercation - whether it be hunting, battle, or whatever - I needed to be out there. You told me ' _Don't let your status hold you back from what you really are.'_ "

Finally getting what he was talking about, Bardock subtly grinned. "I remember that night now. Your brother called you weak, but look at you now...one of the strongest Saiyans in the Universe."

"I'm not meant to be just another lower-class, father, nor am I meant to be just another powerful Saiyan that knows how to fight. If my history with Turles has taught me anything at this very moment, it is that I am meant to live a live of no subjugation - free of those who wish to have power and control over me. I am to be a free Saiyan."

Bardock wanted to comment how in the eyes of a Saiyan, a free one was usually labeled a rogue one, but he didn't want to give Kakarot all too much to worry about.

"And my first action as a free Saiyan is to repay you. If not for you being here, I would have never realized the truth and I would have remained a slave. I'm going to bring my mother back to life."

So Kakarot really was referring to that. "Excuse my language, but how in the hell is that even possible?"

Kakarot shook his finger. "Don't question it, old man, just accept it for what it is. Just give it a few weeks and you'll see her face again. I assure you of such."

This brought Bardock into deep thought. Throughout all his years alive as a warrior, he's not only seen and done, but heard of very ominous and mystical things out in the Universe. Just of all the extraordinary feats he's witnessed in his own lifetime, he knew for a fact that there were millions of other things out there he didn't even have knowledge of. Kakarot had the liberty of being out in the Universe for years, going to whichever world he desired without answering to anyone.

He's undoubtedly seen a lot as well - perhaps even more than himself.

Maybe there was something out there with the power to wish back the undead. His son wouldn't be talking all crazy for no reason. He seemed far too smart, anyhow.

"B-Bardock!"

Amaran got up on his two feet, shaking his head. After his long slumber, the man was still dizzy and somewhat out of it, but he knew for a fact what his mission was.

"Amaran…"

Amaran looked over the area. He saw his comrades dead, as well as the man that they attempted to fight. "So, he's finally gone, huh? Dead?"

Bardock nodded his head. "If it wouldn't have been for my son, Kakarot, we all would have died."

Looking to Kakarot, Amaran's eyes widened. He never knew that Bardock even had a son, but it did make sense. That man was his brother and this kid, his son. They all had the same hairstyle. But still, something felt off.

"Where did he come from?"

It was then that Bardock fell silent.

Kakarot didn't know what to say, either.

With quiet overtaking the area, it had clicked. "He was working with your brother, wasn't he?" Having gotten no answer, Amaran raised his voice. "WASN'T HE!?"

"So what if I was?" Kakarot asked him. "I killed the man who murdered your comrades, so I would say all is fair."

Amaran shook his head. "No, no, no, kid. You got it all wrong. You betrayed Freeza, so you're still an enemy to us." He looked over to the boy's father. "You know the protocol here, Bardock. No matter what, we have to kill this traitor."

Kakarot glanced at Bardock. He knew that the man wouldn't try it - not because he's weaker than his own son - but because Bardock had more of a conscience than his own people. He just had that feeling. Bardock was better than Turles.

"Yes, we do," Bardock told Amaran. "And if he were any other person than my son, I would make an exception. But sadly, I can't."

"That makes you a traitor, too, then!"

"Then so be it."

Amaran lunged for Bardock, but he just stood there. He looked over to Kakarot, who gave him the go ahead.

Amaran didn't even think of the fact that Kakarot was far superior to Turles, for he wouldn't have been able to beat him anyhow. He was blinded by rage due to the fact that most of his men were killed and that the only survivor would actually let a traitor live - son or not.

Bardock and Kakarot both raised their hands and fired off a wave of chi at the same time. Amaran froze in the sky and tried to change directions, but Kakarot's blast wouldn't allow such. Once he was caught by Kakarot's, Bardock's attack came in to finish the job and pulverize him.

Only pieces of his armor fell down to the ground after it was said and done.

"And that takes care of the final problem," Bardock said.

"You have to get out of here as soon as possible," Kakarot told Bardock. "I have to make sure not a single trace of anything here is left behind so this planet must be erased completely."

"No, I'll do that myself, Kakarot. You go ahead and take off. I'll need something from Turles as evidence to the King that I've taken care of the problem."

"Speaking of Turles." Kakarot walked over to the man's body and dug inside his chestplate to take out a bag. Once he saw that there was only a few left, he smiled. "Bastard."

"What's that?" Bardock asked.

Kakarot flicked one over to Bardock. "Eat it and find out."

Bardock looked at the bean, then back to his son. If it were any other person, he'd deny such since people had a tendency to be sneaky, but he didn't see any reason for Kakarot to harm him. So Bardock shrugged his shoulders, said what the hell, and ate it.

Kakarot couldn't help but smile as he witnessed his father being rejuvenated right before his very eyes. Once Bardock stopped shaking, Kakarot spoke to him. "So, how do you feel?"

"Amazing. Kakarot, what is that stuff?"

"Just something that's been helping me in my travels." Kakarot tossed the bag into the air and snatched it before putting it away. He walked over to Bardock and gave him a light jab on the shoulder. "It's a pleasure being able to see you again, old man. See you around?"

"See you around."

Kakarot created some distance between them before rocketing away into the sky. Once Kakarot twinkled away like a shooting star, he turned back from his son. He couldn't even begin to describe the pride he felt in how strong he had become, and to be able to gain so much power at such a young age. Bardock knew he'd be at the top of the food chain.

It was all just a matter of time.

* * *

"I-I can't believe this shit. Bardock really is a traitor…!"

Zima smacked Choy upside the head so he could keep his voice down. The two youngsters watched Bardock remove Turles' head from his body so that he could take it with him back home as personal evidence for having captured the rogue Saiyan.

Nobody knew it was more than one, so Bardock will be able to make his story stick.

But Zima had to try.

He had to get rid of the man who killed his father.

As far as he was concerned, there was nothing else to convince him that Bardock didn't do it. And since he wasn't able to take care of Bardock himself, he'd need to have a word with the King.

After taking one of the surviving ships on the Freeza Planet, Kakarot now had his sights on one Planet.

"Without Turles to get into my way, I can confirm with those Earthlings if there are orbs with powers to bring people back. But I need to get to that planet without getting tracked." Leaning back in his seat, Kakarot let out a sigh. "So first stop: Planet Yoyu."


	29. Movin on up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bardock gets a promotion due to his most recent assignment; Zima tries to prove how Bardock is traitor; Taro is welcomed to the world of a Saiyan warrior; Vegeta loses his V-card; Kakarot calls in a favor to get back to Earth untraced.

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 29**

**"Moving on Up"**

* * *

The news of rogue Saiyans came as a shock to almost all of the Saiyan people, even the prince of all Saiyans, albeit he had his thoughts on other matters.. Vegeta IV was cocnerned that their plans revolving Freeza and his father were sabotaged more than anything else.

King Vegeta spoke to his son via scouter since he was on Planet Koori. After being caught up to speed, Prince Vegeta just needed reassurance that their "business" was still riding on sturdy wheels.

"You need not fret over these matters, Vegeta. One bad apple isn't bound to ruin the entire tree."

The King's son couldn't help but worry at least a little bit over all of this. He would be wasting his valuable time on that ice planet if they were to expect any set-backs in their agendas. Something deep in him was saying that they needed to take precaution, but the mere thought of seeming like he had cold feet was what made him trust his father's words and carry on as usual. "Very well. Be sure to inform me if anything else major transpires."

"Yes, of course."

One pip and the call was done.

Ail opened the doors to the throne room to allow a few Saiyans in, but before he could notify the king, he had been tripped over by one of two children that barged into the room with a great sense of urgency.

Catching the eye of his own child right behind Zima, Nappa couldn't help but wonder whatever business Choy and the other kid had going on at the moment, but he kept his mouth shut and waited for whatever words were to be said.

Despite their insane haste, the two children had the decency to calm themselves enough to the point where they bowed in the presence of their king before a single word was spoken.

This was extremely out of the ordinary. A Saiyan wouldn't dare run into such a room of class and authority in such a disrespectful manner - not unless they truly had a proper reason to do so. If it were two full grown men, he would have considered making an example of them, but these were mere children - children who still had a lot to learn - especially regarding proper etiquette.

"What matter happens to be of so much significance that you two come rolling around in here like headless animals?"

Choy's heart was pounding so much that he felt to be in a state of shock. His eyes were glued to the ground as he wouldn't even dare looking up to the King. Zima, on the other hand, showed no fear.

The kid looked right in Vegeta's eyes and spoke what was on his mind. "My king, I have extreme reasonings to believe that one of your mid-class warriors, Bardock, is a traitor to the Saiyan people."

This got many silent reactions out of everyone in the room, even King Vegeta himself. Toma was on the verge of saying something to come in his friend's defense, but the stink eye he got from Selypa across the room was what kept him at bay. Toma took a deep breath and had his eyes set on the kid so he could hear whatever little bullshit story he may had conjured up.

Rubbing his goatee with a furrowed brow, King Vegeta was thinking of this. He knew for a fact that no Saiyan would accuse another of treason unless they had a great reason. What made this all the more inordinate was the fact that this was a mere child throwing accusations - a child that wouldn't have even spent a single day on the same battle-field as Bardock - unlike other Saiyans. Any person that knew Bardock tended to speak highly of him. Yet here, a child, who didn't even know him, was saying this.

Based off those facts alone, it was hard for King Vegeta to even believe the boy, but who would he be to just shut the kid down without hearing his explanation?

"And why do you suspect this?"

"I followed Bardock and his team to watch them carry out the assignment you gave them - the assignment to eliminate the rogue Saiyan. And when I was there, I watched him k-"

"Ah, there's the man of the hour!" King Vegeta boomed.

Seeing Bardock alive and well put a smile to King Vegeta's face, for he knew that his mission ultimately resulted in a success. Not only that, but he was holding the dead body of someone he couldn't help but assume to be the supposed renegade warrior. The only downside was that none of the other Saiyans he sent with the scarred warrior were by his side, though asides that, the assignment was complete as ordered.

This was just perfect timing on Bardock's behalf as well. He was here to witness his name being dragged through the mud - or at least an attempt at it.

Bardock dropped Turles' stinking body dead smack in the middle of the room, where everyone could see. Sure, it wasn't sanitary, but Bardock was making a statement. "Better to show than tell and leave the mind wondering, isn't it?"

"Indeed it is," King Vegeta said.

"Everyone else along with me failed. This guy was stronger than we all thought - holding a power-level of 15,000. It took all of us to make an combined effort in just doing damage to him. I just so happened to be the only survivor."

Toma and Selypa closed their eyes upon getting the news of Totapo and Pumbukin being killed. The both of them were very capable warriors on the frontlines. They were, at the very least, glad that it took someone of an insane power to eliminate the two of them. They for sure knew Bardock tried his best out there. That was all anyone could ask of him.

"And wouldn't you figure?" Bardock asked. "My own brother at that."

King Vegeta referred back to the child throwing accusations all over. "And this is why you suspect Bardock to be a traitor? Because his brother went renegade?" He then got out of his throne chair and rose his head. "You suspect this man to be in cahoots with the very person he's just killed? Bardock...a traitor?"

Bardock looked over to Zima, who locked eyes back with Bardock. He stared so hard that he had the words "murder" written all over his face.

 _Zorn's boy._ Bardock had figured it out. _That makes sense._

"Yes!" Zima shouted back to the King with a clenched fist. A few Saiyans stepped out of line to get in front of the boy to prevent him from getting closer. Zima just ascended a few yards off the ground to still see the King. "I witnessed it all with my own two eyes! He killed his own comrade in an effort to save his son, who was working with his brother! I saw it all, I swear! It's only a matter of time be-"

"Before nothing!" Vegeta roared.

He thought of how it would feel to be spoken so lowly of if he was in Bardock's shoes and that alone infuriated him enough to the point of where he didn't even want to see the child anymore.

"Given that all you have is words while the man you're trying to drag down has a body as evidence to show his allegiance to the Saiyan people and their cause overthrows anything you have to say. You ought to be punished solely off these baseless accusations!"

Zima's heart skipped a beat. Would King Vegeta really punish him - Zima, the son of Zorn - offspring of one of King Vegeta's best advisors and strongest men? Did his lineage have no meaning to King Vegeta? At all?

"If there's anyone who's a traitor to our people…" Vegeta slowly raised his finger up. Zima hoped that finger would be appointed at Bardock, but as his shitty luck would have it, Vegeta's finger was directed right for him. "It would be you."

"But-!"

"Teach this insolent child a lesson," Vegeta ordered. "Any one of you is all I need for Zima to be shipped off to his new home." He sat back in his throne.

Once grabbed by the legs, Zima began to try and fight being held. "E-Exile? M-My King! Please, you must see reason!"

Choy was left mouth agape and speechless upon witnessing his friend being carried out the room like deadweight while he tried to fight and speak his way out of punishment. Once Zima was out of the room, Choy turned back to King Vegeta, who stared at him coldly.

"I've the perfect planet for your friend. Would you like to join him?"

First immobilized by his friend's exile, now sent running out the throne room after King Vegeta suggesting he could be next. This elicited a few chuckles from a few of the guard Saiyans in the room, as well as Nappa, Choy's own father.

With all of that mess taken care of, Vegeta took a deep breath as he rubbed the temple of his head. He was indeed grateful that Bardock managed to come in and successfully take care of the problem that he had been worried about for hours now. Freeza would be undoubtedly pleased that he showed enough galls to kill one of his own men to prove his loyalty - which was ever so temporary - to Freeza.

"And you, Bardock. With the great loss of fine men and my top soldiers, Evid and Amaran...it is not for your strength that I'm going to promote you as my personal advisor and colonel of the Saiyan army, but for your diligence. A true leader sees everything through no matter what, and you've proven that to me, today. Congratulations, warrior - you've done the impossible."

Indeed he did.

Unheard of was it for a Saiyan born a lower-class soldier to ever even come close to being promoted to not only mid-class status, but colonel of the Saiyan army. Behind the King and Prince, he was now the strongest Saiyan on all of Planet Vegeta. It wasn't going to set in until much, much later on, but nonetheless, Bardock's legacy had just been boosted hundreds of times over.

He didn't know what to say except thank you, but he even felt that wouldn't be enough. Bardock pressed his fist against his left breast and lowered his head prior to getting down on one knee. He had proven his worth many times over and it wasn't until now that he'd be globally recognized for it.

Such an honor wasn't what he ever dreamed of, but he took it with pride.

* * *

With Selypa working guard duty for King Vegeta, this left Taro to himself. This wasn't anything unusual to him. Even after his great success travelling with Bardock and his comrades and getting a great boost in power, Taro didn't stop in trying to expand his own power. He constantly trained.

All he wore were pants - pants that were soaking wet due to the insane amount of training he put himself through. Most 12 year old Saiyan children had an either lean body with very minute display of muscle, or a chubby body that bulged a bit. Taro was unlike 12 year olds; the kid had a lean, yet muscular and vascular appearance: a hard-rock chest and a defined six-pack as hard as rocks.

His training regimen didn't just pay off with his power, but with appearance as well.

Being so laser focused on his training, he didn't realize he was being spied on yet again. Without Zima to accompany them, it was just Choy and Elery this time. The only reason Choy came last time in the first place was to have fun with Zima and pick on him. But without his partner in crime, he didn't even want to bother wasting time on him.

"Why the hell did you drag me out here for him?"

"We need to find a replacement before the adults do," Elery told Choy. "With Zima gone, we're going to need someone else on our squad and I don't want another grown man on our team…"

"Why?" Choy asked her. "Just what is so wrong with having another grown-up on the squad? That might be just what we need, in fact. With Zima gone w-"

"Good riddance to him," Elery hissed. "He was a pain in the neck and I'm glad he's gone wherever he's at. This guy will be an even better replacement than Zima - probably the best one we could ever get."

"Did you bump your head or something?" Choy chortled. "He's a weakling…! Zima himself showed us that."

Elery punched Choy in the chest and opened her fist to drop a scouter. Choy caught the pink device before looking back at her. "Fine, then. If he's weaker than Zima, then we won't waste our time on him." She then got closer. "BUT...if he is stronger...then he's coming with our team, whether you like it or not."

Choy smacked his lips and put the scouter on his face. "Fine, whatever." He clicked the scouter on so he could just get this over with. His nerves were still rattled by King Vegeta and the only way to calm them down would be by having a feast. The only thing on his mind was food.

With the scouter beeping and the numbers going on, Choy's body tensed and his eyes widened. Elery noticed his tail totally straight and idle - as if it was in some sort of trance. After the scouter finished getting the read on him, Choy shrieked.

"Nine hundred….seventy...five."

_Yep. Definitely stronger than Zima._

By 3 times actually.

The sound caused Taro to startle. The kid did a 180 to look around. It didn't take long before he spotted two familiar faces coming right toward him.

Elery wasn't the one in on it last time, but the reminder of Choy laughing and encouraging Zima on to fight him was what had the kid on the defensive. With his fists balled and tail wagging side to side, he was just ready for another fight.

"Don't get your tail all in a twist, alright?" Elery spoke up. "We didn't come here for any of that nonsense."

He let his guard down, albeit only a little. Still suspicious he was in regards to whatever potential agenda these two may have. "Then what?"

"We want - no - we need you on our team! You're crazy strong!"

Elery nodded. "What he said. You'd be a great asset to our team."

"Really?" Taro asked.

She nodded. "That business you had with those Saiyans proved to be worthwhile after all. You're rearing one thousand units!"

"Not even the two lazy bums we have on our squad are as strong as you," Choy told him.

Elery smirked. "So what do ya say?"

Choy was excited and Taro was glad to see he was the total opposite of hostile to him, but that wasn't what got him. Most of all, he appreciated that wicked smirk Elery was giving off. He grinned right back at her.

"Of course."

With rotating shifts, work on Planet Koori didn't stop at all. There was constant work from sunrise to sunfall. Of course, some complained of the ridiculous cold, but none would dare defy the order of their royal leaders. They were working for a promising purpose on this world and that's exactly what they were going to continue to do.

As his workers work, Vegeta worked out. Inside his giant igloo, the Saiyan Prince was shirtless and doing one finger push-ups with his pinky. In an effort to challenge himself, he did so while doing a handstand. An attempt to do nine thousand of these non-stop was the goal. He didn't have anybody here worthwhile to fight after all.

Well, maybe Kuni.

But Vegeta decided against that. Despite her surprising strength, she was still only a half-Saiyan and she definitely didn't amount to the power that he had. After doing the same push-up over eight thousand times, he was just starting to break a sweat. Perhaps he needed to do ten times as much as his end goal to get a genuine work-out. It's really been a while since he trained like this. Those super saibaimen weren't worth a crap on an ice planet that produced no sort of soil.

**KNOCK KNOCK**

Vegeta stopped his exercise as he was in the middle of lifting himself up. Subsequent to opening his eyes and looking behind him, he saw Kuni right at the third entrance of his igloo, which was over fifty feet in the air. Like all the rest, she could be seen wearing a big, furry coat that covered nearly her entire body. When she allowed herself in, Vegeta just continued to work-out.

"What is it now?" he asked with a spike of aggravation to his voice.

"Oh, nothing," Kuni shrugged her shoulders. "I just came to inform you that everyone is working hard and diligently. At this rate, we'll be off this dump of a world in absolutely no time."

"That should be expected," Vegeta said. Not once did he grunt while he did his push-ups, but now that he had accompany that he was expected to verbally respond to, doing the push-ups became a little bit more of a challenge due to imbalanced breathing. "Is that all?"

As they've known each other since they were little kids, this was truly the first time Kuni ever got to see Vegeta shirtless without blood and bruises all over his body. The young Prince was lean but so well toned, like humanoid silk. Seeing his v-shaped figure and bulging shoulders, she really only got to see how alluring he could be for the first time.

"Is that all!?' Vegeta repeated himself a little louder.

"Actually, no."

"Then what is it?"

"Since the cat's out of the bag and all, I have something to confess."

Not really interested as to what her confession could possibly be, Vegeta bit. "Ahuh."

"Being part Saiyan, I get these urges to take action from time to time and get in a fight. All my life, my mother has dedicated a portion of her time to teach me in controlling this but now that you know, I was hoping that you'd be able to show me a little bit of fun."

 _Fun?_ Vegeta sprung up onto his two feet. "When I think of fun, I think of rotten corpses and near cripples making last stands before I send them to hell in front of their loved ones. Sparring isn't fun unless it's with someone of equal power."

"I would be foolish to not assume that you're underestimating, wouldn't I?"

"Yes, you would. And it's best not to waste my time. I have a work-out to attend to."

Kuni unwrapped her clothing and tossed it over to the floor, only in black short malleable pants that reached her knees and some combat boots. She didn't even bother to wear a top, which allowed Vegeta to get a first look at her top, which were not too small and plumpy looking.

Without warning, she shot forth. Vegeta smacked her hand away and continued to block her punches and kicks with his palm. Kuni wasn't just attacking directly; the halfling was capable of maneuvering herself all around in the middle of an attack in attempt to catch him off-guard. Vegeta was experienced enough to see these coming but he had to admit, if they were even in power, he'd have a hard time.

Two quick jabs to the face were blocked and a knee as well, which had Kuni involuntarily lower herself. The woman span around as she got low and pushed her arm by ramming her right fist into her left palm in an attempt to elbow Vegeta in the low abdomen. He was ready for it and blocked her with his knee before.

The two looked at one another with a grin.

The Saiyan Prince actually saw more of a work-out in dodging a nifty fighter than doing some lame push-ups.

"My turn."

Kuni fell down on her back and used Vegeta's ankles to slide through her legs. As she came up, she managed to get a strong grip of his tail, which had him by surprise for a short period of time, though long enough for Kuni to slam his back against the wall, shaking the entire igloo.

Despite the fact that his weakness had been trained long ago, Vegeta felt a cold chill go up his spine. The cold felt like a concept lost in the vacuum of space with her breast's touching up against his chest. She still held onto Vegeta's tail, which was wrapped tightly around his waist.

Slowly rubbing her fingers around it made Vegeta's knees almost buckle. As a result, his tail started to have a mind of its own and began to uncoil itself.

"Coronation is right around the corner for you, isn't it?" Kuni whispered.

"It is…" Vegeta responded softly.

She pressed two fingers against his chest and walked them up to his chin. "Do you know what that means?" Vegeta shook his head. Kuni leaned in and whispered further more into his ear. As she ended her sentence, the Saiyan's eyes grew wide.

Kuni pulled her head back and smiled gently. "Nobody needs to know."

Never being in a moment like this before all his life, Vegeta felt extremely uncomfortable. If he were to go with the flow, it'd end up feeling like a guilty pleasure, which was something he wasn't really too down for. "As your pri-"

With her lips pressed against his, he wasn't given the option to object. The only time Vegeta ever felt a portion of excitement was when it came to battling a worthy opponent. As of the moment with his body temperature rising and his tail softly brushing Kuni's body all on its own, the Saiyan prince discovered a new excitement. Instead of pushing away, he fell right into her hands like melted pudding.

Directly outside Vegeta's own temporary residence on the planet, Nion was right outside the first entrance down on the ground. Even from fifty feet up, the sounds of her daughter's moans mixed with Vegeta's heavy breathing and strong curses brought a smile to her face. She tapped her long, blue fingernails on the silver pad that she had clutched to her chest. "Good girl."

After turning her back, Nion began to type into the device.

* * *

The party never came to a stop on Planet Yoyu. Bright lights flashed so much all over the planet that a person with even the slightest eye problem had a high chance of getting permanent eye damage.

Kakarot landed his ship down by the parking space for all intergalactic ships. Once Kakarot touched down, there would be men en route to checking for any possible damage and going to pump in gas without any questions being asked of them.

A woman came all up in his face. "Where is it that you would like to first visit, Kakarot? Possible carnival? The warrior show? Maybe the rodeo?"

His often arrival on this planet had more people remember him than he would have liked. But then again, that's what he ought to have expected by coming to this planet quite often for the past ten years.

Before the discovery of Turles' death, Kakarot would smile full of joy every time he was brought here. Not only was there food and nice beverages, but a handful of games where he could put some weakling fools in their place.

Now he couldn't do as much as grin.

He pushed the woman out of his way and continued to walk toward his destination. The more crowds he got himself into, the more people came to greet him left and right. The young warrior tuned out his name being shouted every five seconds. He had one focus and one focus only.

After walking around and blending in for a quarter of an hour, Kakarot had finally arrived to the destination he desired. What he was looking at from below was a giant, oval shaped arena that could fill well more than 100,000 people. Everyone cheered on so hard and loud that speakers needed to be placed in four different sections at the top of the closed in arena just so everyone could hear the woman of the hour: Pinchi.

An hour-glass figure blonde with daisy duke shorts that revealed her filled and voluptuous thighs and a cut top with string ties so tight that it made her 30 C-cup breasts look like a pair of Ds. She tipped her cowboy hat and kicked up her boots and gave the crowd a loud yeehaw through the mic that made the audience go crazy.

She was dangling from the arena in a black steel cage as she watched a handful of brave souls ride the most scariest looking animals that happened to be caught on this planet and many more.

Kakarot was at the very front door and before the bouncer as he broke up the single file line ahead of him. The man was obviously a retired soldier of the Freeza Force. Kakarot could simply tell by his physiological make-up. Not just that, but he still wore the armor. After getting a quick look at Kakarot's attire, he knew what was up.

"I'll have to stop you right there. Either you get in the back of the line or you pay double the necessary amount to enter, plus a tip for your's truly."

Kakarot and the man had an intense stare down for all of five seconds. He was wearing thin on patience and didn't plan on having to play the waiting game. For all he knew, Freeza was tracking his location this very instant. He needed to lose all traces of himself and the only way he could get it done was through the help of a friend of a former friend. The Saiyan turned his head around to look behind him. There on, he saw the faces of disappointed folk and some who even wanted to start a fight because they got skipped ahead so easily, though none dared to step up given how effortless it was for Kakarot to push them to the side.

Kakarot deduced that there had to be at least 100 more people waiting back there before looking back at the bouncer. "You want me to get in the back of that line and just wait?"

The man folded his arms. "That's right."

Being reeled in and met with a skull to the face couldn't have been said and done faster. One second, he was standing firm and then next, the bouncer was lying on his back catching Zs. Kakarot casually walked in the arena as those behind him started to rush in.

Just as expected, there were people riding giant beasts and scary looking creatures, testing to see who could who on the longest as they constantly rammed into one another with the goal of knocking a person off in hopes of winning.

Kakarot had been there and done that, just when he was a little boy. He and Turles went around the planet one time, doing every single event that they had listed, all to the point where their names eventually became a household one amongst those that attended Planet Yoyu regularly.

"Only two brave souls left! Who's going to win and take the crown home!"

Clapping, roars, and chants all started simultaneously.

There was a five legged, one eyed shaved bull like fifty foot animal with three horns and one giant tusk. It stomped on the ground as it looked ahead to its opponent, which was a six legged, furry creature with scars and bruises and razors for teeth, being just about the same size.

Once the two started running toward one another, the entire arena instantly fell silent right then and there.

The sounds of these two beasts stomping their way towards one another was all that could be heard by everyone watching this.

And as expected, the three horned beast knocked down his opponent and the man on it. The crowd erupted in cheers full of joy and excitement.

"And what do ya know! The big bad wins his seventh straight!"

Kakarot stood directly in the middle of the arena as soon as all the animals were brought out. The Saiyan watched the audience leave, which didn't really pay him any mind. All of those people had one of four things on their mind: more events, sleep, food, or sex.

The steel cage is slowly brought down to the ground before opening to permit Pinchi to exit it. Seeing Kakarot's face for the first time in such a long run made her cheeks go red. As a kid, she would just pinch his cheeks and give him treats but seeing him all grown up now, Pinchi just wrapped her arms around the young man and kissed him on the cheek.

"About time you come back around here, stranger! Where ya been? We've been missing you, ya know?"

"Busy," Kakarot answered.

Looking around, Pinchi's brow furrowed. "And ya mega twin? Where he be at?"

Of course she'd ask. Wherever Turles was, Kakarot happened to usually be right alongside him. "Dead." He expected a reaction from her. Pinchi wanted to say something but hesitated before she got the courage to ask what happened. Kakarot cut her off, though. "I need a favor."

"What kind of favor, partner?"

"I need a ship - one with high quality in comparison to the ones you've known me to be using from Freeza's organization. Oh, and I'll need to make sure it's untraceable by his forces, as well as the Galactic Patrol."

That last sentence told Pinchi that Kakarot was most definitely up to something, probably which wasn't anything good at all.

"Oh, and you can drop the dumb accent with me. You're not on stage anymore."

Pinchi cleared her throat as she started to chuckle. "Haha, right." She grabs her revolver from her hip and spins the gun around prior to putting it on safety and holstering it back. "Follow me, old friend."

Doing as told, Kakarot followed Pinchi over to a red curtain directly on the opposite of the entrance of the arena. Once the two went behind, there was only a dim, flickering light that allowed them to see. Knowing what to do, Pinchi elbowed a button directly in the back of her.

Chains started moving and a certain engine could be heard running. Next thing, the two were being sent down at blazing speeds as if they were on a bullet elevator.

"I would have to assume you've finally started playing with the big boys - seeing that you need to hide out and be smart now."

"Finally?" Kakarot scoffed jokingly. "I've been playing with the big boys all my life."

After the elevator comes to a stop, Pinchi walks right ahead. Kakarot does as well.

The Saiyan instinctually puts his arms over his eyes in an effort to shield them from all the dazzling light in this room - if it could even be called that. It was like a underground museum shop. There was a waterfall on the other side of the room and a showing of all different types of ships on a single elevated area from afar.

Battle-suits showcased in glass with all types of different armor - more than likely a collection.

There was even a single section with a multitude of walls that held various types of weapons that undoubtedly did all sorts of things. With her hands on her hips, Pinchi looked around with a big, wide grin plastered all over her face.

"You wouldn't believe all the strings I've had to pull and the many dicks I had to suck just to get all of this." She turned around to face Kakarot. "You know I'm one of the most wanted women in the universe?" She then shook her head. "But they'll never find me."

"Couldn't care less." Regardless of all the fancy tools and equipment in the room, Kakarot only concerned himself with the main necessity. Looking back to the ships stored in the room, he pointed at the one that stood out most to him - a ship with the shape of a star that stood on four legs with five different entrances at the bottom for all its wings. Pointing it to it, he put his interest on display. "How's that one?"

"Oh, of course you'd pick the best one!" Pinchi cried. She playfully wiped away her fake tears as she sniffed. "That's my baby. I made a dumb idiot bandit fall in love with me just so I could steal his ship and bring it back here and possibly make a fortune out of it. So while you won't have Freeza or anybody else on your back, you might have to worry about a group of assholes."

Kakarot reached into his armored chest-plate and grabbed three separate bags filled to the very end and tossed them all over to Pinchi, who's eyes started to dazzle. The bag covered all that was in, but she could practically see the silver inside.

"You know I could buy an entire planet with all this money and still have some to spare, right?"

Kakarot hopped over by the ship and went under it. The sixth entrance had an obvious hole outlined inside of it with a button right next to it. He figured this ship would definitely do him some promise.

"Will that be enough?"

"Marry me!" Pinchi yelled.

"No."

Kakarot pressed the button and went in the ship. Seeing that there was an opening at the very top of this place, Kakarot shot off, in a hurry.

Pinchi looked at the bags of money in her hand. Upon realizing that she could actually live the rest of her life with all this money, the woman had to figure out what she wanted to do to get by.

"Oh, I got the perfect plan: seduce some loser and get him to buy a planet for me, then just kill the dumbass and keep everything for myself." She pulled out a silver tube looking trinket and held it against her chest. "Thank you, Kakarot."

* * *

Everything was miraculously brought back to normal without any literal explanation. Sure, the cities of Earth were magically rebuilt, but it still didn't bring back the hundreds of thousands of lives lost. Regardless, those that did survive were more than grateful to have their homes back.

After the incident with Kakarot, Bulma and Katayude got to meet Roshi and his pupils. Ever since, they all grew close with one another and hadn't been in trouble since thanks to them. They effortlessly collected the Dragon Balls, but bringing back Panchy was a no-no because of some unspoken rule that those dead for more than a year couldn't be brought back to life.

They had gotten so close that Roshi even moved his house right on Omori's island.

Sitting down, looking at the daily news and how they spoke of this miracle, Bulma had a genuine smile on her face. While she wasn't able to bring her own mother back to life, she still managed to do a great service to others by bringing their homes back to normal as they wanted.

Maybe she just had to move on. Maybe it was a sign.

"Just in, we're getting notifications of an entrance from outer space. We switch to our satellites right here so you can see for yourselves. It looks like a literal star-ship enveloped in fire as it enters our planet's atmosphere."

Hearing this on the television had Chi-Chi's eyes shoot wide open. Just in a state of meditation, she felt a sudden power coming closer toward them. "One of them's back."

After eating, Tien could be seen wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Just one, huh?"

Chi-Chi got right up on her feet, ready to take off.

"We still shouldn't rush because it's just one of them," Tien said. "I know you feel that insane jump in power. Besides, Roshi made a deal with them that they won't kill if they just get senzus."

"And there's another one coming in right behind," the reporter on the television said. "It's hard to tell whether the star ship is being followed or if they're coming in together."

Chi-Chi looked to Tien and back to Bulma.

The daughter of Gyumao didn't know about them, but she sure as hell wasn't going to let them walk on her world, thinking they owned the place. "And I've gotten stronger, too."


	30. The Past Trails

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot heads to Planet Earth for something more promising than Senzu Beans; Chi-Chi has an agenda on her own and decides to follow Kakarot; Choy, Elery, and Taro all become a team of their own; Zima is discovered by a pair of Saiyans that favor him regarding their unfortunate circumstances.

**Dragon Ball Governed:**

**Chapter 30**

**"The Past Trails"**

* * *

It never came to mind that Kakarot would be coming back to Planet Earth so soon - and by himself. During the many years while he was unfortunately under Turles' wing, every time they got close to their destination, Turles would be the one to go over the plan with Kakarot just so that all of it would be embedded into his mind. Out of habit, Kakarot expected to receive orders, but in present time everything was different. The young man, subsequent to seeing nobody behind him after turning around, looked back to Earth and released a solemn sigh as he began to enter the planet's atmosphere.

Had he forgiven Turles and continued on with his idea of growing in power, then Kakarot would have solely come to Earth in hopes of accumulating more senzu beans. That wasn't the case this time around, though.

"That girl and her friends…" Kakarot knew for sure that the people he came into contact with the last time he was on Earth knew of the Dragon Balls and how they worked. He needed to get into contact with at least one of them again. It mattered not if they were willing to give it up or if he'd have to take it by force. "I'm going to get those wish granting objects." Part of Kakarot wished he could handle matters in a civil manner, though at the same time, he was itching for an intense battle. He didn't really know which of the two he wanted more, but he'd be fine with either or. He learned how to suppress his combative nature thanks to Turles and hone the aggression to make him become more cunning and charismatic - for a Saiyan can't gain everything solely through battle.

Kakarot took a seat so that he could bear witness to the fiery red flames that engulfed the entire front of his star ship due to the gravitational pull of Earth sucking him in. After just a few seconds, once the Saiyan's eyes came to spot the clouds, a grin formed on his face.

Once he was within 20 feet of touching down, the ship automatically came to a halt prior to slowly descending itself as the flight legs came out so that he could have a safe landing.

With his brown combat boots on the Earth's soft, green grass, Kakarot let out a refreshing breath. The wind blowing on his face was a sweet addition to the rain that drizzled as the skies began to grey.

"Feels good to be back." He looked over ahead in the distance. There wasn't a single soul he could see with the naked eye, but he felt seven visitors on their way. "And just my luck. Heh. My power's grown far beyond their imaginations at this point, so there's nobody going to be able to stop me if push comes to shove."

And just as expected, he gets seven familiar faces: Chi-Chi, Krillin, Kaston, Liban, Tien, Chaotzu, and Roshi.

Kakarot glanced at all of them except for Chi-Chi. This woman - the first time he fought her - was an enigmatic figure, yet fascinating all at the same time. The power bubbling inside her was fighting to shoot up, but Kakarot sensed that she was making a genuine effort to level it out, as were the majority of her companions. Just knowing this alone told Kakarot that pretty much every person in his presence hated every fiber of his being.

But he didn't care.

"Short time, no see," Kakarot greeted. Not wanting to waste any time, Kakarot decided to cut to the chase - by cutting Krillin off before he could greet the Saiyan. "I see that by the amount of people that have been so eager to greet me not even a minute after my timely arrival, you're on edge. And if you wish to fight me, fine. I just hope that you've gotten ten times stronger than you all were compared to the last time we fought. But just know, I have a genuine reason behind this." Kakarot raised one finger. "I didn't come for any senzu beans, I've instead come fo-"

Kakarot's continuous rambling came to an immediate stop. His open mouth closed hard with so much speed that he scraped the bottom inside of his lip due to a blow directly at the back of the head. The others got to see a man accompanied by two others holding a gun after Kakarot fell right over on his face, groaning in annoyance.

A part of Krillin really wanted to stick his finger out and laugh at Kakarot, but the humane part of him could only let him say, "I tried to warn you!"

"Way to go, Pasta!" one of the intruders cheered on.

Roshi rose his foot to lessen the gap, but before he could move a single centimeter more, a beam of energy came right past the cheek of his face. "Any one of you come one step closer, and the next shot goes right through the head."

"Yeah, our beef ain't with any of you," Ghetti - Pasta's little brother - told the Earthlings. "We came to take back what's ours."

It was bad enough that they had one intruder in Kakarot to concern themselves over, so to have three extra unknowns on their land trigger happy wasn't a green flag. Everyone could feel just how weak Pasta and the others were, so they weren't necessarily bothered by their power-level. Chi-Chi was the one eager to step up and tell them, "I'd like to see you try."

"Alright, then." Pasta cocked blaster. "Bust a move."

Kakarot grabbed hard at the dirt in the ground, still making muffled noises of discomfort. He didn't get to see the faces, though he could feel that the three behind him were a group of weaklings. Being taken by surprise thanks to a feeble creature to the point of where his vision grew deceitful made him growl; he would have to rely on his other senses.

By using his ears, Kakarot was able to make out the grunts and groans coming from the random three people as punches and kicks mercilessly struck them. It wasn't even mandatory that Kakarot try to feel out for whomever was beating on them. He knew that it was the female doing the dirty work.

Once his world stopped spinning, Kakarot cautiously rose back up onto his feet. The three were on the floor, snoring. And then there was Chi-Chi, who was clapping her hands off as if she had just got done with a day's worth of hard labor.

"You really have improved," Kakarot complimented Chi-Chi. "Though I'm rather disappointed you didn't just kill them."

Chi-Chi scoffed and got right back to the point Kakarot was trying to make before he took a blast to the back of the head. "What do you want?" Feeling that he came back here to start a ruckus, Chi-Chi had her right arm crossed and away from her chest. If he were to make any single move that she felt could initiate a fight, she'd be ready to retaliate.

"I came here to retrieve those wish granting orbs I heard of when I was last here. I've a wish that needs granting."

Chi-Chi's ears twitched and her guard dropped. As for everyone else, either their eyes widened or they clenched their jaws. For someone as evil and horrible as Kakarot to even know of the Dragon Balls opened up an entirely new can of worms. If he were to use it for his own selfish, and likely evil reasons, then they were in trouble.

Seeing the concerned look on their faces, Kakarot figured he had to reassure them. "I don't intend on coming here and beating the location of the orbs out of you, but only if you force my hand. Regardless of if you do so willingly or not, I will get my wish."

Nobody knew what to say or how to respond.

Except for Roshi.

The senior martial artist stepped up, walking casually with his arms behind his back. "While we would love to help you, you will have to wait a year until the Dragon Balls reactivate. We already used them recently, so you must be patient."

"Master!" Everyone yelled.

Roshi knew he would be met with confusion and perhaps some future arguments regarding his current actions, but this was much like the scenario he had with Turles all those years ago. If he remained nonchalant and in control of his emotions - using his head instead of his heart - then blood wouldn't be spilled.

"Besides," Roshi continued, "what you happen to be wishin' for isn't possible...since the Dragon Balls can't bring back anyone that has been dead for more than a year."

Kakarot's heart skipped a beat. Just how in the hell did this Grampa know what his wish happened to be? Kakarot had been on a lot of worlds and witnessed many odd things, but coming across a man who could read minds just wasn't one of them. He wanted to ask how he knew, but Kakarot felt like that wasn't necessary. Not to mention, he didn't want the others even knowing that he had some semblance of attachment, for he believed they'd think him weak and vulnerable - which was what Turles always taught him. "Fine...I'll just stop by some other time."

"However…" Roshi added. Kakarot stopped turning and looked back at Roshi, who had his hand up. "There might be a place - a place where such limits aren't existing."

With his interest piqued, Kakarot felt that he would be a fool to not ask. "What might this place be?"

"A long time ago, when your partner came to collect the senzus, he came across Kami, the guardian of our planet. Just as he promised me he wouldn't harm any more folk, he did the same with Kami. Before he parted ways from him, he called Kami a Namekian. It never occurred to us that our own God could be from an alien world, but since he is linked to the Dragon Balls, I can imagine that wherever he is from, just may have their own set as well."

All this promising information forced Kakarot to form a child like smile. "You Earthlings aren't all that bad after all. Despite your inferior prowess, you have some intelligence. If I wasn't such a gullible child back then and knew what I do now, I wouldn't have done what I did, no matter the pleasure I got from it."

The Saiyan turned around to enter his star ship. His last words left everyone but Roshi perplexed.

Once Kakarot took off, far away from ear shot, the earthlings began to speak. "D-Did he just apologize?" Liban asked.

"I think he did…" Tien answered him.

Krillin couldn't help but shake his head. There is no way some guy like Kakarot, who hunts the innocent and preys on the weak for a living, could ever even feel a scrap of contrition for the actions he took back then. It just wasn't possible in his eyes. Kakarot's recent words just didn't feel enough compared to his past actions. "I'm not sure…"

"Yes, he is," Roshi clarified. "That's basically his own way of saying sorry. I was able to read his mind the entire time he was here. I won't disclose what's happened to him, but a part of me feels bad for the young man."

"Even after what he's done!?" Chi-Chi asked in disbelief. This man was the same person to kill her father years ago. She couldn't feel sorry for the bastard if he were to kill his own parents as a way to right his wrongs.

"Yes," Roshi answered her. "He was far too easily influenced by the evil growing up. Had he grown on the other side - the side of good - he would be one of the brightest people to ever have." The old man began to rub his beard. "Quite frankly, I believe he still has a chance at something greater in life."

Chi-Chi scoffed. "I don't know about that..."

And yet after all the lessons she's been taught by old wise men such as Roshi, Karin, Mister Popo, and Kami, Chi-Chi couldn't let go. Roshi was very empathetic, for he went through the same feeling of loss as she did, but Roshi forever preached about letting go. As in his own philosophy, learning to let go is learning to grow. Roshi had lectured her about this many times over the years as she grew up, and Kami himself even elaborated on it, explaining to her that all life has good in them, and everyone deserves a second chance. Roshi would be wasting his time if he tried to instill the lesson of virtue in her head again; as in present moment, Chi-Chi is a grown, capable woman, so regardless of whatever decision she is to make, she knows what she's doing. Roshi would just have to maintain the faith that she'd make the proper one.

"We should all head back home now," Roshi said with a deep sigh.

"But what about them?" Kaston asked as he pointed over to the three intruders.

"I'll take care of them," Chi-Chi said. "You all go ahead. I'll figure out what it is they want and I'll be sure to fill you all in on the details when I get back."

Chi-Chi spoke with such certainty that the others didn't even question whether or not the daughter of Gyumao had ulterior motives of her own.

"Sounds good to me," Krillin said.

Roshi and all the others took flight and headed out. Chi-Chi knew that the only person who more than likely knew of her real intentions were Roshi, but the fact that he didn't say anything or give her even the slightest look meant that he approved of whatever she was set on doing.

Once they were at a safe distance, Chi-Chi looked back down on the three siblings with a smug grin. Looking down at them, she really couldn't believe that there was more to this world than Planet Earth - that there were real life extraterrestrial beings out in the Universe. It would appear that the talks between Bulma and her father speaking about the universe being virtually endless had some truth after all. As much as she'd love to go out and explore, she had an agenda of her own.

"WAKE UP!" Chi-Chi roared.

The frequency of her voice had the trio's heads feeling like they were going to explode. Once the macareni gang woke up, the first face they saw was the same one that belonged to the person that kicked their behinds.

Chi-Chi crouched down and snapped her fingers a couple times so that they she could get their undivided attention.

"We're going on a little trip in your stupid rocket ship..."

* * *

Sand and dust entering the wounds of Choy and Elery as they looked up at the oversized mountain beasts before them was the feeling that'd have anyone get a heart attack, no matter the age. But being Saiyan warriors, they had to stand their ground; this meant that running was absolutely out of the option, despite the fact that a lot of Saiyans did retreat. These hese two children were out-classed but they wanted to show that they had the hearts of real Saiyan soldiers.

But it didn't hurt them to ask for help.

Elery managed to blast three of them in the one eye they had in an effort to blind them and buy her and Choy more time. She looked over to her partner, who was clicking on the scouter numerous times in mere seconds. "Are the adults responding?" she asked.

"No…!" Choy growled. "We can't just sit around and distract them forever until the full moon comes up, Elery. We have to attack them head on with our strengths combined."

The three beasts were five times the size as Elery and Choy. Once their vision began to come back, they snarled and huffed heavily as they began to run toward them. Choy and Elery channelled energy into the palms of their hands, ready to attack at point blank range at the very last moment.

Just as the three are mere meters apart from them, Taro came down with so much velocity that his kick on the first enemy knocked over the other two, resulting in all three of them lying down on the ground, unconscious.

A sense of relief came over Choy and Elery as they let go of heavy held breaths.

"I came by as fast as I could when I got the request for help on my scouter." He then started to look around, expecting to see more than just Choy and Elery. "Where are Brok and Rabe?"

"Those two assholes heard we were calling for help and cut us off," Choy hissed.

"But why would they do that?"

This was Taro's first campaign as a Saiyan warrior. He figured that a true comrade always got the job done with his peers all alive. To ignore your comrades who are in need is a simple act of cowardness. This was what his mother taught him, for she had one of the best Saiyan soliders to work alongside with in the man named Bardock. He was always there for his comrades no matter what, so he couldn't help but assume all other Saiyans held the same ideology.

"Because they don't care if we live or die!" Elery explained to him.

Taro motioned his head. "Follow me. I have a plan and I want the both of you to listen closely."

Brok and Rabe were two heavy set Saiyans with scars all over their face and body. They had been working on the frontlines a long time and soon due a promotion - perhaps with another thirty years of fighting. After killing off a few weaklings, the two set camp and had been talking for the past half hour.

'Those two brats won't make it through this campaign now that Zima's dead."

"They just might with the new brat by their side," Rabe told Brok. "He's replaced Zima for a reason, after all."

Brok almost spit out his food once Rabe told him that. "Don't make me laugh! This is the same kid who was born a lower-class warrior. Zima was the best of his generation before he was exiled. I doubt this kid is going to live up to be anything, regardless of who is parents are."

"Did you get a read of his power-level?" Rabe asked.

"Tch! Why would I? I'm disgusted enough as is babysitting two weaklings. Why should I concern myself with a third?"

**PipPi**

"Three different power-levels."

"Must be the kids," Rabe concluded.

"Implying that they survived?" Brok chuckled.

The two Saiyans stood up from their spots and read over the incoming battle powers individually. They got a reading of Choy to be at 540 and Elery at 345, but the last reading was just too high to belong to the other child.

"Nine seventy five?"

As if on cue, all three of the Saiyan children land right then and there. Brok had his fingers pointed at Taro as he continued to scan his battle-power. "There is no way in hell you're that strong. You're just a brat - a low-level brat!"

"When Elery and Choy asked for help, neither of you stopped what you were doing to help them. You ignored them and let them off to fend for themselves and possibly die. You may be Saiyans, but you're not true warriors."

Brok and Rabe look at one another for a split second before they busted out laughing heartily.

Being laughed at like that made Taro's face start to go hot, but the young warrior kept his cool. "My mother's great brother in arms, Mister Bardock, was and still is respected for a great reason. My mother told me it's because he looks out for his own in combat and does his best to make sure everyone ends a campaign with their lives intact. He did what he had to do in order to be promoted and none of you will ever amount to anything...because you're cowards."

The two Saiyans stopped laughing right then and there. Elery and Choy both began to back up once they notice the veins on their faces pulsating heavily. Taro doesn't show any fear and stands his ground as the two near him.

Brok was the first to grab Taro by his hair and punch him in the face. Rabe came in with a devastating knee to the stomach, causing Taro to cough up a great bit of saliva. After letting him drop, Brok and Rabe get to stomping and kicking on the child relentlessly. Being insulted by someone inferior to them wasn't something they took very kindly to, so they had to teach this boy a lesson - put him in his place.

Taro bit his lip so hard that blood came gushing from it. He wouldn't give Brok nor Rabe the satisfaction of yelling or grunting out in pain. Taro did his best to let the pain feel as normal as it possibly could be.

"We ought to kill this asshat," Brok said.

"Hehehehe, I'm one with ya, pal."

The two raised their boots high. One was ready to smash it against his head and the other was going to crush his spine.

Right before they did, Brok and Rabe came to an absolute stop. One look to the side, and Rabe can see that Elery has a hold of Brok's tail, meaning that Choy has a hold of his. Both began to fall at the same time.

Taro rolled over and missed the two landing on him just in time so he could get up. The kid was breathing heavily with a sore and aching body, but he still had the strength to have his bloody lips curl into a smile.

Brok and Rabe plead and beg to be let go, but Elery is seen with her face practically changing color to red. Her veins are popping and teeth grinding. Taro blasted both of their scouters, blinding them as the shards shot into their eyes. Brok and Rabe let out cries that in itself begged for mercy, though the kids showed that they were just as heartless as the two full grown Saiyans.

"I told you one day you'll pay for what you've been doing to me ever since I joined your stinking team!" Elery screamed.

Brok and Rabe barely had the strength to hold their heads up at this point, but they could see Taro crouching down with his backhand facing the ground and palm facing the sky. In his hand, a white, ball of energy was being formed. As he looked them both in the wounded eye, he gave Elery and Choy the order. "Rip their tails off."

Brok and Rabe felt an excruciating pain go up their spines once their tails were casually ripped off like a band-aid on a child's elbow.

"Now they won't be able to transform. We'll trample them."

Understanding exactly what it was that they were doing, Brok and Rabe's eyes went wide in absolute fear for the first time in a very long one.

* * *

After all this time, he still couldn't believe it. The true traitor was back home, enjoying his time as one of the upper-ranking soldiers as the genuine loyal Saiyan warrior was being sent away to some barren wasteland.

Zima could only imagine what his father would think of all what's taking place. He had been traveling for the past few days ever since his exhale. Just when he thought he was nowhere close to his destination, Zima's eyes came upon a round, yellow planet - which wasn't a very good sign. Curious as to where he'd be going, he looked on closer. Once his pod got into the planet's atmosphere, he could feel the heat beginning to rise.

This wasn't normal.

The engine immediately shut down and the pod just began to plummet. The temperature continued to grow and grow, until the point of where Zima felt as if his body was literally on fire.

The kid screamed his lungs out in pure horror. Never before had he managed to make any of his victims scream to such a degree, not like this. His heart was thumping and his brain felt like it was going to burst.

Feeling like this would carry on forever, Zima's pod crashed into hard a medium sized mountain, all of which collapsed onto him immediately subsequent to impact.

The kid wasn't able to move a single muscle; his body was in a smoldering smoke. Breathing in itself gave him the utter feeling of absolute hell. Zima was barely able to do anything.

Looking to be simple food for the inhabitants of this world, big spider creatures began making their way directly toward him, in a singular group. Zima could hear the critters clicking as they get close, though he was unable to move a single muscle. Having no other choice but to accept his fate, the young boy closed his eyes as he held his breath. His superiors always spoke on about how a Saiyan's time to die could come at any moment - as death and combat went hand in hand like yin and yang. Zima always figured that he'd be on the greener side of things for a long time - doing a killing. As terrifying as it was to face death, the young warrior didn't want to go out like a little toddler - crying.

Seconds had passed by and he was yet to feel anything different. Asides the pain from the horrible fall engulfed by fire, Zima realized that he hasn't even been touched by predators.

Two people stopped by before the kid. One of them being an older man with greying hair and the other being a young one with long hair and a scar going across his chest and face. The young man makes an attempt to get closer, but the senior puts his hand in front his chest, stopping him from going near.

"Vegeta must have thought us both dead, otherwise he wouldn't have sent this child here to such inhospitable lands."

"Should we eat him? Like we did that other guy a long time ago?"

"No. Not if the kid survives, at least." Though he didn't really need the child, the older man figured that he could spin this young man's growing hatred of being exiled into wanting vengeance as well. He could use this brat to further on his plans for any case that they happen to stumble upon anybody or anything in the Freeza Force.

"Bring the child back to the cave and feed him. Take care of him, find ways to heal his cuts - just make sure he doesn't die."

"Yes, father."

The taller, younger, and much more muscular male of the two, neared the child and picked him up. Just by being touched, Zima squealed like a pig, but his voice was so hurt at this point that he could barely make a sound. It was duly noted by the painful uncomfortable look plastered on his face that he wasn't enjoying this - not in the slightest. The old man didn't think he'd be very much too happy with being in that situation, either.

"So you've exiled another, eh, Vegeta? Just how many more need to be betrayed until everyone else realizes that you're not a true king, no matter how much you sit on that stupid throne?"

The looked at the charred remains of the pod buried by the rocks and scoffed before turning around to follow his son.


	31. Past Pieces Resurface

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On the way back home from a special mission, Toma is suggested to check in on his son; Elery and Taro become closer; Zima miraculously comes across a pair of Saiyans in a very similar predicament to his own; Kakarot and Chi-Chi get into an altercation.

**Dragon Ball Governed:**

**Chapter 30**

**"Past Pieces Form Again"**

* * *

Special missions were perhaps the most uncommon thing on Planet Vegeta; very rare did a group of warriors receive a mission with more importance than the others as all assignments were taken very seriously. But this mission? The potential profit alongside the strength of its inhabitants convinced King Vegeta that he would need the entirety of the mid-class squadron to see this particular assignment through.

The one leading the brigade was none other than Bardock himself.

Whenever Toma asked him how he felt about his new promotion through their scouter, all Bardock had to say was, "It's a great honor, but I can't say that the excitement is still there." And truth be told, status wasn't something that Bardock always concerned himself over. The only thing he ever worried about was the action that came with his assignments. And even then, fighting got boring at times.

Bardock rose through the ranks as some low-class common soldier. The only thing that ever made him stick out like a sore thumb was how much passion he took in making sure every man survived every single campaign. He hated it when a soldier fell on a honest job. And now that he was a Saiyan colonel, he was pretty much bound to have many Saiyans look to him as a legend of hope later on down the road.

Though even the greatest of men couldn't rise up without some controversy or objection. Zorn's child, Zima, was undeniable proof of this. Because of that reason, Selypa felt the need to chime in. "Well I certainly hope you don't end up like the last great Saiyan colonel."

Having a feeling that he knew to whom Selypa was referring, Toma asked, "You mean Paragus?"

"Mhm," Selypa answered.

"Why? What happened to him?" Bardock asked.

The story of Paragus' exile was known to most Saiyans within the higher hierarchy as the commoners solely speculated on what the reason was for Paragus being sent away. Newly promoted soldiers didn't even know as it was kept confidential as King Vegeta worried about potential protest from those that believe strongly in strength.

"I don't know the story," Selypa told Bardock. "But Paragus and his son were shipped off to some frontier world. Even if they were exiled, they never once came by over the years."

"It's because he knows what's good for him and his son," one of the accompanying Saiyans spoke via the scouter. "If Bardock truly were a traitor and exiled, he'd know better than to come back, too."

Bardock initially found the comment insulting, but he didn't open his mouth. There was a part of him that felt that there were peers of his that envied him for being able to come out from underneath such adversity, rising through the ranks to one of the most skilled warriors ever. He saw the looks on some of his peer's faces whenever they looked at him, especially the higher-class Saiyans that had been promoted long before him, though despite their facial expressions, Bardock knew for a fact that they wouldn't ever say anything disrespectful to him directly - the very most they could do was throw a bit of shade here and there, but he didn't typically care. This comment felt different. He knew his position and so did the others and Bardock. Before Bardock did change his mind and ask if the man had something on his mind, Toma spoke up. "Say, Bardock. Why do you think that kid could have been accusing you of being a traitor? I know for a fact that you aren't, but there must be a reason that he was out pointing fingers. Honestly, I figure he could have gotten you mixed up with somebody else."

"That's implying that there's still a mole amongst our ranks," one of the other soldiers added.

If anyone else were to ask Bardock that question, the scarred warrior would begin reading between the lines of it, but he knew Toma held no ulterior motives and was genuinely curious. Though Bardock knew why, he played it safe and lied anyway. "I have no clue." Despite the fact that the kid was trying to put him down, deep down Bardock couldn't help but feel bad for the boy and his fate.

"Well, the group of soldiers that kid was fighting with is going to need another replacement," Toma told the others. "And I don't even think there will be anyone up to par with Zima. He has the greatest potential amongst his generation."

"Had," Nappa corrected, "as far as we know, the brat's dead now." The bald Saiyan was rather disappointed in how things turned out with Zima. The kid was working alongside his own son, Choy, who was undoubtedly on the path of becoming one of the greatest warriors of his generation, especially since he had Zima to guide him. But of course, things didn't turn out like he had envisioned.

"There's a perfect replacement for Zima's old group," Bardock brought up.

This caught the attention of those that weren't even intentionally listening in on the conversation. Curious, Toma asked, "Who?"

Bardock wished he could just see the look on Toma's face whenever he told him. "Taro."

Complete silence over the communication channel. Taro was a name only familiar to Selypa, Bardock, and Toma. The others didn't even know who the hell the kid was.

Toma didn't have any particular reaction to this. He was quiet for a bit and thought about it. The possibility that the child could actually become half as decent a soldier as Zima was virtually impossible, though then again Bardock was a Saiyan to show that he can do what was deemed impossible.

But still...Taro?

It was just too hard for Toma to believe.

"Ya know, Selypa," Toma started. "we can try for another one if you'd like."

"In your dreams, pal."

Given how the two had spoken to another recently, anybody unfamiliar with them both would be under the impression that Selypa and Toma never had anything going on - that they only looked at one another as associates, working for the same cause. But the initial reaction Toma had to his son's power-level was disappointing, so much that she was put off by him. But if a time ever came where the two had to save one another's lives, they'd do so in a heartbeat, though they would never admit so out loud.

Bardock knew that all Toma needed was to see it with his own eyes to believe it. "Just go see the brat whenever you get the chance. He lives back where we all used to hang out."

"Back when the whole gang was still alive?" Toma asked.

Bardock let out a little huff. "Yeah." He never really thought about all the losses he's suffered over the years. Taro and Leek both died back to back just about. And now it was Totapo and Pumbukin. These were people that Bardock pretty much grew up with. Now there were only three of them.

He had to admit. This profession wasn't for the weak hearted.

"Well, I think I'll pass."

Toma didn't see the point in going see the kid, but there was a part of him that was insanely curious.

* * *

A group that consisted of five was reduced to four, pushed back up to five, and then reduced to three.

The crew that once consisted of Brok, Rabe, Elery, Choy, and Zima was far different now. There were once three children and two adults. Now there were three children. And of these three, one of them was replaced.

By none other than Taro.

Once Brok and Rabe were taken care of, Taro led his crew to another planet, which was very little of a challenge for Taro, though being difficult for Elery and Choy. Due to his great strength and natural leadership, the kid was able to look after the both of them and guide them to another successful assignment.

But still, Elery and Choy were pretty beat up. Pieces of their armor was broken off and they had bruises all around their wounded bodies. In comparison to them, Taro only had dirt and dried blood of his victims plastered over his skin and apparel.

The three were atop a narrow, dirt mountain, basking in the bright sun that was covered with the smoldering smoke from below. Taro looked down at the piles of bodies burning as Choy and Elery regained their strength by eating the extra rations they got from Brok and Rabe. After all, those two weren't going to be needing it any time soon.

All of this still took a lot for Choy to get used to. He missed when Zima was on the team. As he was thinking about it, he just so happened to let his thoughts come off the tongue. "Man, I really wish Zima was here."

Even though Zima went out of his way to pick on Taro a while back, Taro didn't show any satisfaction in the fact that Zima had been exiled. He didn't feel good or bad about it. Hell, for all he knew, Zima could have actually been a decent comrade. After all, Choy was associated with him but turned out to be okay to hang with. Having nothing to say about him, Taro kept his mouth shut.

Unlike Taro, Elery definitely had something on her mind. "Zima was an ass. He had it coming to him."

Choy could see on the look of her face as to why she was angry, and he didn't understand why. Elery was typically soft spoken and conservative, but it was the nice Saiyans that were worrisome whenever they grew agitated or worse yet - angry. Once before Choy witnessed her explode and he sure as hell didn't get any hugs.

"I know one thing...when she gets like that, I need to leave." Choy took off the ground and into the sky, leaving Taro and Elery be.

Once Choy was out of sight, Taro turned around to face Elery, who was looking down on the ground with her fists clenched. Her cheeks were so red that for a split second, Taro could have sworn that he saw fumes being emitted from her face. Despite all that, he didn't make the decision on leaving. He stayed and asked Elery, "Why did he have it coming to him?"

Any Saiyan that ever participated in genocide deserved any bad thing that they had coming to them, but death in battle was equivalent to breathing for the Saiyans so they didn't see the wrong in it.

So for whatever reason Elery felt that Zima got what he deserved, showed Taro that it was more than likely personal.

Taro was slow to approach her. Elery felt her entire body radiating heat, so much that Taro felt like he was on the verge on entering a sauna. The pressure of her intense power caused the wind to blow furiously and made the rocks begin levitating. But the closer Taro got to her, the more Elery felt his soothing vibe - one which began to assuage her near uncontrollable emotions.

Once they were just a few inches from contact, Taro grabbed her by the shoulder and lifted her chin with the side of his index finger. "You can trust me."

Such was the total opposite of what was advised for most Saiyans coming up, especially those of higher rankings. Most managed to survive because they looked out for themselves and themselves only, which naturally drew Saiyans to mistrusting one another, even if they were on the same team.

Elery was extremely hesitant to open up. Most Saiyans would take advantage of one's traumas, but Elery knew that there were good people out there. Her mother was proof of it. And besides, she could tell that Taro genuinely cared.

The first time she spoke, it was a simple mutter, one so soft that Taro couldn't hear despite being right in her personal bubble. Realizing he didn't catch it, she just said it out loud. "They forced me to mate with them unwillingly." At her current age and even then, she wasn't fertile and capable of giving birth to children. It was a gut feeling telling her that she was being taken advantage of and the only way to protect herself as a Saiyan being through her own power wasn't even enough. A Saiyan always relied on their strength to not only defend themselves, but kill. The fact she wasn't able to do either really tore her ego and having no other choice but to work with them was mentally tormenting.

With tears running down her cheeks, her voice cracked in more ways than one. "They violated me…"

Though Elery wasn't violenting shaking like earlier, her tail was still wildly lashing side to side.

Feeling his warm, hairy monkey-like tail brush up against hers caused Elery to make eye-contact with Taro. With a slight grip, he began to caress it, eliciting a pleasurable feeling that calmed the young girl's nerves. This was what his own mother did to him to calm him down, so Taro figured it'd work for her as well.

With a smile that could brighten anyone's day, Taro said, "I'm glad that we killed those two bastards. People like Brok and Rabe aren't true Saiyans."

"You're right," Elery agreed.

"And there's one thing you were right about as well," Taro added.

Curious, Elery asked him, "What?"

"Zima had it comin'."

* * *

If death was really absolute nothingness in this world, Zima would have very much preferred that instead of waking up. Despite the grave injuries, his body signalled that it was time to wake up. The young Saiyan's eyes fluttered. He made out that there was a cave from the ceiling. Just turning his head made him groan in pain. And as soon as he looked directly out through the opening of the cave, he shut his eyes closed with haste.

His sounds caught the attention of the other two that were looking over him. The younger of the two was sure that this person wouldn't manage to survive this, but as expected, his father was right yet again. Paragus was always right. The man was older with a greying beard and subtle wrinkles beginning to take form.

Broly, curious as to this person, began to walk over to him. Paragus took notice of this and was quick to grab his tall, muscular son by the arm and hold him back. He didn't even need to speak. The look in his eyes told Broly that he didn't want him to go near the boy at this very moment.

Broly turned back to the kid, who could be seen rubbing his eyes and shaking his head. He had been out for weeks, but luckily due to force feeding him and making sure he was breathing, he managed to see this day alive.

However, his survival came at a great cost - irreversible damage to be exact. Zima had burns and scars all over his body, which was especially noted on his face. His right eye appeared blue and on the verge of dropping from its socket. His hands were burnt so badly that the bone could be seen.

The only part of him that didn't appear to be as grotesque was his chest area, due to the chestplate he had protecting him, but there were still obvious burns plastered all over his body.

Paragus knew for a fact that this kid was a Saiyan due to his hairless tail, which looked like a mix of pink and red. Part of him even wondered if the young warrior was still capable of taking form under the full moon.

"Good morning," Paragus greeted him.

Zima lifted himself up and placed his back against the wall of the cave. Each every single movement elicited a slight groan or heavy wince, but being a destined Saiyan elite, Zima was very much used to pain.

"It's good that you survived."

Zima looked at the man and the taller, yet younger person. All his life, Zima was around Saiyans and he didn't even need to take a second look to realize that these two were Saiyans just like him. The main giveaway was the tail wrapped around Paragus' waist. He was a trained warrior, no doubt.

But still, he never saw this man in his entire life. Zima couldn't help but question the old man. "Who the hell are you?" His vocal chords had been so damaged that he sounded like a robot, which was something he immediately noticed. Just speaking hurt his voice so he spoke rather soft, though as quiet as it was, a pen drop could be heard in the cave. The subtle echoes helped as well.

"I am Paragus. Maybe you've heard of me."

It was then that Zima's eyes went wide. He had heard about Paragus, the once great Saiyan colonel and close comrade to King Vegeta. "You're the traitor that was exiled from Planet Vegeta all that time ago!"

"Traitor?" Paragus' voice had pure venom in it when he repeated that word, so much that Broly had to take a step back from him. Paragus' face grew red hot as he clenched his fist. "The only person who happens to be a real traitor is King Vegeta! Boy, do you even know the true story behind why I was sent away?"

Zima shook his head.

So Paragus decided to fill him in on everything. He told Zima on how his son and Prince Vegeta were born around the same time, and it just so happened that Broly had a power-level higher than that of Prince Vegeta! In a mere calm state, just a few years after being inserted into the incubation for Saiyan children, Broly had a record breaking power-level of 920. And this isn't even mentioning when he gets mad. The angrier Broly gets, the more powerful he becomes. It's as if he has no limit in power. Paragus wrapped up his story by speaking on why he came to this planet and how they were trapped.

Hearing all of this left Zima's mouth agape. He was left speechless after hearing everything. Broly spoke before Zima could render a verbal reaction. "Why are you here?"

It was then that Zima's surprised had been replaced by the same rage that Paragus had just mere moments earlier. The kid jumped right up on his feet, scowling.

"You and I aren't that different. There was a traitor amongst our people, a man who went by the name of Bardock. I've always suspected that he killed my father Zorn because he was there the moment he died and the people that they fought were just far too weak to be able to take my dad out completely. My suspicions were confirmed when I saw Bardock kill one of his own comrades to allow his treacherous son to escape. I went to the King but he took the traitor's word over mine!"

"And he had you sent here…" Paragus concluded as if he already knew the story.

"Exactly," Zima hissed. "Vegeta and that traitor need to pay."

Never before had Paragus felt like he could ever relate to anyone to such a strong degree, especially a mere child. He approached Zima and placed his hand on his shoulder. "No. It's just the King who needs to pay. With all these years of reflecting, I've come to realize that Vegeta is an unworthy King, one that will keep his own people down as long as his lineage retains the throne and status as leader over his people. I wouldn't dare try to take the King's place out of respect, but the fact that he shows fear of my son's power tells me all I truly need to know. For years, I've been training my son in combat for one day justice will be served. Once we cut the head off the snake, everyone else will fall in line."

Zima nodded his head. Paragus truly did make a great point. If not for King Vegeta, Zima would have at the very least gotten an opportunity later on to kill the scarred warrior. But with Vegeta sending him out, he's basically rendered him no possible chance for proper justice.

"I couldn't agree more."

Zima was now willing to do whatever it took and wait however long for their single chance to right the wrongs of King Vegeta.

Broly just so happened to be along for the ride, knowing he was the main weapon. And well...he didn't mind Zima's unexpected arrival. He's always wanted a friend.

* * *

For the past few days, Chi-Chi had been following Kakarot throughout space. She was so focused on the Saiyan that the woman didn't even bother in taking a step back and sucking in the glorious atmosphere that was space. She had to concern herself over Kakarot's destination and make sure to keep the Macareni gang in check.

Knowing exactly where Planet Namek had to be, the three siblings were rather surprised that Kakarot's ship wasn't going in the right direction.

"The idiot is closing in on the planet's location, but he isn't taking the proper route to land there." This elicited laughter out of her little brother, Getti.

"You never know," Chi-Chi mumbled. "he might not know after all." With a grin of mischief plastered over her face, she turned around to face the three. "I'll just have to get a headstart."

There was a lot of talk about the inhabitants of Planet Namek and how the people there were powerful sorcerers. Because of this, many people stayed away. With the lack of presence of Namekains out in the world, more and more rumors about them spread - some containing truth with big dabs of lies here and there.

"But why go there?" Pasta asked.

Chi-Chi didn't answer Pasta and wandered around in her own thoughts. If the Namekians are truly anything like Kami of Earth, then she knows she won't have a problem getting along with them after all.

"Just tell me how to turn in," Chi-Chi demanded him.

Pasta felt goosebumps go all over from Chi-Chi's sudden raise in voice. Knowing better than to object her, he did as told. "Alright, alright…"

Just as Kakarot was seen making a turn to head over toward Planet Yoyu for directions over to Planet Namek, he caught eye of a ship from afar headed toward a green little light. Squinting his eyes, Kakarot realizes that what appears to be a simple star from afar is actually a planet.

He turned his head and shrugged his shoulders. At first, he brushed it off as some Freeza members headed to an assignment, but he took another look at the ship before it completely left his sight.

It looked just like the one that followed him toward Planet Earth!

Kakarot's thin lips curl into a menacing grin. "Maybe I ought to get payback for that cheap shot from earlier."

Letting a simple petty matter get to him, Kakarot changed directions.

Though little did he know he was headed right for the planet that he intended on asking directions for.

Any Planet is complicated, no matter how plain or harmonious they look.

The most simple way to describe Planet Namek was an inverse version of Planet Earth. The sky was green and the grass was blue, and the color of the planet's water matched the former. In addition, the planet had two suns that shined constantly, so everything was highlighted and bright as could be.

Though despite the fact that there are two suns, it wasn't all that hot. It felt good with a good decent bit of light and nice winds to boot.

Chi-Chi was really hesitant to exit the ship because this was unchartered territory for her. Visiting a different town on Planet Earth was the extent of what she figured travel could be, but intergalactic travel? That was entirely something different. She wasn't sure if she'd survive this planet's conditions. After all, it wasn't anything like Earth.

Or so it seemed.

When asked what's wrong, Chi-Chi spoke of how she didn't know whether or not it'd be safe for her to leave. Pasta and the others were quick to reassure her that everything will be fine since they hop from planet to planet all the time. The only reason a planet would be inhospitable would be because of the lack of resources, not because of oxygen or anything. It was all pretty much the same - if you exclude gravity and weather of course.

Gathering the confidence to head out, Chi-Chi tells all three of them, "Stay put when I get out. And don't try anything funny while I make sure everything is safe, alright?"

The three give her a thumbs up, an okay sign and a wink.

The first three minutes after stepping out, Chi-Chi walked around and got herself caught up in the serene ambiance of the planet. When she walked away to a far enough distance, the ship that she arrived in Namek in started up.

Chi-Chi turned around eyes wide. As soon as she began to generate a ki attack, the ship was already blasting off.

But not even a second later, the ship was put to an absolute halt. Pieces of Pasta's ship came crashing down in a heap of fire and smoke.

Chi-Chi didn't do anything at all to cause such damage. She tried to feel for their life forces, but to no avail. Instead, she got another signal. One that she didn't expect to witness so soon.

With Kakarot's face barely being visible through all the smoke, the only thing he had to say was, "Well, well, well…"

Chi-Chi clenched her fist and started to seeth through her teeth. There was no doubt in her mind that Kakarot spotted the ship, recognized it, and followed them. They were riding up too close on him from behind.

"It's sweet of you to have followed me and lead me to the planet I was actually looking for." From where he landed, Kakarot got a few good looks at the Namekians as he came here through the air. Curious, Kakarot asked her, "What is it that you could possibly want?"

With no need to lie, Chi-Chi responded truthfully. "I came to wish back the one person you took away from me all those years ago. And if I can't bring him back here either, I'll be glad to have you meet him in the otherworld."

Kakarot chuckled. "That is, if your father is in hell. Also, I've come for similar reasons and I have no intentions on letting anybody stop me."

"You having no intentions of such can cost you your life," Chi-Chi retorted.

"Or yours," Kakarot rebutted.

Chi-Chi was quick to launch herself right for Kakarot, who blocked the first elbow and swipe for the face. He backed up more and continued to swat away her quick jabs and clawed attempts. He grabbed her by the arm and tossed her over to the side.

Chi-Chi performed a side-flip mid-air and fired a ball of ki toward Kakarot, which was deflected back for her. Chi-Chi reacted quickly and cancelled the energy blast out with one of her own. As their vision was blurred, Kakarot took this as the opportunity to make his first move. Chi-Chi knew he was behind her, but happened to be too slow to react.

A brutal knee to the back sent her sliding on her stomach.

Chi-Chi was quick to get back up, but before she could make another move, three Namekians slammed down right between them: one tall and slender, the other short and chubby, and the last being tall and ripped.

Kakarot didn't say a word as Chi-Chi stays in awe at the presence of these three.

The three Namekians were quick to survey the surroundings and immediately ask what is it that they could possibly want. The thought of them wanting the Dragon Balls came across their minds, but they didn't deem it to be very likely.

But Kakarot and Chi-Chi exclaim at the same time that they want a wish of their own granted.

"Both of you?" one of them asked.

And yet again, Kakarot and Chi-Chi answer the same simultaneously.

One thing that the Namekians note is the evil in Kakarot and the purity in Chi-Chi. However, the tricky part was that neither of the two had any evil intentions on the planet. But it'd be better safe than sorry to beware of them both since they were unknown people - Kakarot especially.

"We'll let Saichoro decide if either of you are worthy," one of the Namekians said.

"And then we'll see if we can work something out."


	32. Enlightenment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot and Chi-Chi make their wishes come true; Roshi teaches his students of an extraordinary technique; Kakarot and Chi-Chi have to deal with one another even more...

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 32**

**"Enlightenment"**

* * *

Every different world had ways of constructing their own civilizations, and they had their own way of choosing the leaders who guided the people - for good or bad. Saichoro, often referred to as the Grand Elder of Planet Namek, was one of the few survivors of the horrible cataclysm that took place on Planet Namek hundreds of years ago. He birthed over one hundred children by himself and raised them all to be peaceful people with a strong will and drive to restore Namek to the glory that it once was.

He learned to appreciate a lot less to a very much higher degree because of their unfortunate circumstances.

As this giant thousand pound obese looking slug sat on his throne, with a Dragon Ball just behind his head and idle, he looked down to his most trusted body guardian: Nail - the champion of Namek. Saichoro and Nail both felt the uneasy presence coming from one of the visitors that touched down on their homeward. As Nail was more likely to act upon his suspicions, Saichoro was there to advise him.

"We don't get visitors," the grand elder told Nail. "Regardless of what aura they emit, treat them respectfully. Don't do anything rash unless you feel that their actions may be of great harm to you or the people."

Understanding, Nail nodded. The two strangers were on their way and getting extremely close. In just a matter of seconds, Chi-Chi and Kakarot were just on the outside of Saichoro's residence. He looked over to the elder, who just nodded in approval.

Nail walked over beside Saichoro and just waited. In the middle of the room, a hole opened up and through appeared the two visitors, Chi-Chi and Kakarot. The both of them had a near equal amount of shock plastered all over their faces whenever they first laid eyes on Saichoro. Chi-Chi had experienced a lot of weird things growing up and Kakarot had witnessed a lot of unique beings through his travels as a galactic warrior, but this? This was different.

The three Namekians that prevented Kakarot and Chi-Chi from fighting to the death subsequent to touching down were there to lead them both. They paid their respects to their elder before quietly using the floor elevator back down to the bottom layer of Saichoro's home.

What shocked Chi-Chi was the overwhelming size of this guy. He would frighten anybody unfamiliar with him, but she could feel that he was pure hearted. Though physically weak, the man emitted a lot of power and it was easy for her to tell that he was a generous and well-intentioned individual.

Kakarot, on the other hand, was in awe at the sheer size of this person and in disbelief that he could be so physically weak. But still, there had to be something special about him to be the leader of an entire race such as the Namekians. He just didn't know what. His tail had been wagging from side to side without himself even noticing; that's just how curious the young Saiyan was.

To add to their surprise, Saichoro greeted Chi-Chi and Kakarot as Earthling and as Saiyan.

"And how exactly do you know where we're from?" Kakarot asked.

"I have powers that exceed physical limitations."

Wanting to get right to business, Chi-Chi stepped up with her hand pressed against her bosom. "I come here in peace and by no means do I wish to bring any harm onto your people. I just want to use the Dragon Balls so that I can-"

"Come here," Saichoro interrupted her.

Such a demand that was said with a friendly tone had caught her by surprise. Chi-Chi was hesitant to do so, but seeing that he had no evil intentions, she approached the elder slowly. As she did such, Kakarot's eyes were moving all over the room. He made eye-contact with Nail for a split second and the two had a brief staring contest. For the remainder of their stay there, Nail didn't take his eyes off Kakarot for one second. He didn't even do as much as blink. Once he began to pay him no mind, Kakarot noticed the Dragon Ball directly behind Saichoro's head. His smirk was insanely subtle, but Nail eyed him so hard that it was all too obvious for him to not notice.

The thought of just taking the Dragon Ball came to mind, but Kakarot figured that if he were to take a more affable route, he'd manage to get what he wanted at the end of the day without bloodshed and possible unwanted interruption. One thing he learned: plans didn't always go as seemed and the ones with altercation were the plans that blew up much more horribly than the plans that were more...civil.

With his giant, green, rancid hands covering the entirety of Chi-Chi's small human head, Saichoro managed to delve deep into her mind and witness all that took place through her life, with emphasized points on her reasoning for being here - that of wishing her father back to life.

After removing his hand, Chi-Chi immediately understood what he had just did as far as mind reading went. The two felt an instant connection - a platonic bond so to speak. Saichoro was able to feel all that she felt and strongly resonate, especially since her feelings came from a pure spectrum. The only downside was that she held in a lot of hate.

Wanting to get this over with as quickly as possible, Kakarot said, "We were told that we would be able to grant three wishes. Is that true?"

"That is true, yes," Saichoro answered him.

Kakarot smiled. So it looked like he'd be able to repay his father after all.

* * *

Planet Earth had a limited amount of time for the sun - unlike Planet Namek. Though since it was day time on Earth, the planet was just as bright was Namek was many light-years away.

On this bright and sunny day, Roshi figured that he and his former pupils could get some old fashioned training done. Roshi was wearing a simple tank top and some blue khaki shorts while bare feet. All of his pupils wore their gi, albeit with weighted wrist bands, boots, and turtle shells. Tien, Krillin, Kaston, Chaotzu, and Liban were all taking turns on one another.

Not a single person landed a hard strike as they were merely flexing their muscles and getting their bodies warmed up before they decided to go in hard for some heavy sparring.

Roshi backed away from Krillin and hopped onto a small rock of Omori's island and fired a multitude of chi attacks in the sky and let them explode simultaneously to catch everyone's attention. Everyone immediately stopped and jerked their heads over to the side, bringing their undivided attention over to the seasoned Martial Artist.

"Feel good?" Roshi asked them.

"Yeah, I'm getting a good pump for sure," Liban told his master. Everyone else was quick to agree. Their hearts were pumping a bit faster and they could feel their hot blood coursing through their bodies. Excitement was starting to take over.

"Now you'll all be coming at me for the real fight," Roshi told everyone. "Remove your weighted clothing and your shells. It's time to get real."

This evoked laughter from Tien, Krillin, and Kaston. Chaotzu and Liban just stared on with looks of great uncertainty. Last time they checked, they surpassed their master in strength a long time ago so none of them saw how Roshi would be able to take on even one of them - much less all five together.

"Just because you've gotten back into shape by training alongside Kame and Mister Popo doesn't mean anything," Tien confidently told his master. "We're still ahead by miles."

Roshi hopped off the rock with his hands behind his back, which his students didn't take very kindly to due to the fact that he wasn't even in a battle-stance. This made them feel as if their own master was looking down on them. Roshi noticed this and had a bit of trouble hiding his cheesy smug look. With his feet on the ground, the seasoned martial artist moved his neck around a bit to stretch it out prior to tensing his body and letting out a brief explosion in power strong enough to tear his tank top to absolute bits.

Tien and the others felt the jump in power, though it still wasn't all that much. Usually, Roshi appeared bird chested with a wrinkly body but he was capable of toning his muscles and beefing up. The sudden change in look made it appear as if the old man was taking instantaneous steroids.

But there was something different about him here. His muscles were still lean but there didn't appear to be any flab. His arms were small, toned, as was his nos visible six pack. And the flow of his beard...it seemed different. He looked far more chill in every way.

Roshi nonchalantly lifted his left hand and beckoned each and every single one of them to come at him simultaneously.

Seeing that their master was serious, Tien was the first one to jump in. Next came Kaston and Krillin. Chaotzu and Liban soon followed.

One by one, they came for Roshi. They first decided to take it easy on the old man in fear that they'd hurt him, so they held back a lot. But once ten seconds passed by with nobody being able to do as much as graze him, everyone turned it up a notch and before they knew it, all five of them were giving it their all. The old man kept his hands behind his back and simply moved his body to insane angles with extraordinary balance and composure. After not being able to do anything for an entire half minute after sending tens of hundreds of punches and kicks, everyone powered up and tried to go the extra mile.

Roshi felt the pressure of the power being emitted from his students and hopped back. It was almost overwhelming for him, so much that it almost instantly depleted his focus, but he had the will-power to maintain proper concentration with equanimity. Closing his eyes, he took in a small yet deep breath. He didn't bother opening them and just felt the atmosphere around him.

He side-stepped Tien's strike, grabbed him by the wrist and had him sliding at his six o'clock with a simple toss. He then casually spun around Krillin, blocked a knee from Liban using his own knee and pushed the two away with a kiai push prior to bending all the way backwards and using both of his feet to send Kaston off the ground and onto his back.

The motion in which Roshi moved was nothing short of impeccable. Whenever he moved at another angle, there was still a near transparent vision of his body in another position. He was moving with the wind with his mind as clear and adaptive as water.

All of his students were slow to get up, utterly amazed at what Roshi was able to do despite being so much behind in strength.

"W-What in the hell was that?" Krillin asked. "There's no way! We had to hit him at least once, right guys!?" He looked over to his peers, which discouraged him as he witnessed the dumbfounded look over their faces.

"That has to be some kind of technique," Tien commented. "Your reflexes just intensified like one trillion times...explain that."

"Yes, I know," Roshi told them. "but it's hard and I haven't even gotten close to mastering it. If you would have kept on for about half a minute more, I would have gave in."

He continued to explain to his pupils that when Gohan, Gyumao, Tao, Orin, and Tsuru were all killed about 12 years ago, he felt an uncontrollable anger beginning to overtake him. The final straw was when Gohan had been killed. The last time he felt an anger even remotely similar was when Piccolo Daimao began his reign of terror, but the anger with Gohan's death was far worse. It took every will in Roshi's very being to not jump at their murderers. When he managed to compose himself, he felt a clarity like never before. It was then he realized the importance of keeping one's emotions in check, especially under stressful situations.

Getting in touch with that same rage and keeping himself composed, he trained and felt himself move and flow like never before. Ever since he had been continuously working at that in secret instead of trying to gain more absolute raw power.

That was the real reason he had been training with Popo and Kami because they both were extremely familiar with this technique.

"That's amazing, master!" Krillin exclaimed. "You gotta teach it to us!"

Muten Roshi just chuckled. All of what he just said and yet of course, Krillin still looks at the cool aspect of it. He had never been in the pressure of the moment to where he witnessed his own friends and rivals die before his very eyes. Such rage Roshi didn't believe that Krillin would be able to contain. But despite that...he was willing to help whenever he could.

Through Roshi's explanation, Tien believed he understood exactly what his master meant. To get rid of unnecessary emotions and remain as calm and passive as the waters of the ocean was the way to do it, though that was easier said than done. This was the conclusion he came to by himself, though still wanting to know more of his master's needed input, Tien asked, "What do you think is the key factor into moving like you did?"

"It's all about keeping your emotions neutral and keeping your mind clear. You let your subconscious take over rather than consciously act out on your next move. Ever heard the saying that your body knows best?"

"Yeah," Kaston answered. "That's what people say when they talk about food or sickness. Listen to your body."

"The same applies to fighting," Roshi informed them.

"What do you even call such a technique?" Krillin asked.

Roshi got to rubbing his beard. Kami nor Mister Popo ever managed to come up with a name for the technique, but Roshi did have a simple answer. "I say it's relying on your sixth sense." He then looked at Tien. "Or you can say your own third eye."

"After all these years, you never stop learning, do you, master?"

That big, rough voice sent a total chill down Roshi's spine, also rendering goosebumps up and down his very arms. He couldn't tell whether a ghost was speaking to him or if this was a real person.

But it couldn't be.

Could it?

Everyone looked behind Roshi and asked who the heck this guy was. The only person who knew was Tien, as he had seen pictures of this man many times growing up. Roshi himself had confirmation whenever he turned around to face him.

With his eyes wide, Roshi could only muster, "Gyumao!?"

* * *

Despite the years passed, Planet Gawake had barely changed. The place remained freezing cold with heavy winds and near blinding fog and towering mountains. The only thing that did change was the fact that the people that inhabited the planet no longer lived there.

Until a life was brought back from the dead.

Underneath the ice cold snow, a hand pokes out like a zombie coming back from the grave. After getting her head out from underneath, the woman sucked in so much air that the snow falling from the sky got sucked into her mouth. It was so long that she took in genuine oxygen so by overdoing it, she began to cough like a mad person.

She was clothed in her armor, though she last remembered being stripped absolutely naked prior to her death. There were tendons hanging from her torn flesh and the cauterized wounds she suffered were visible no more.

"How?" was all she could ask herself. The woman was still in such shock that her skin was barely affected by the dangerous cold.

The fact that she was alive now felt like a dream, but she knew it was all too real. Regardless of that fact, she was sure that the pod she came in was possibly still around.

It was time for Gine to head back home.

* * *

Darkness had consumed Planet Namek. And one thing about Planet Namek was that it had two suns, meaning that there was literally no night time.

Knowing this and seeing the darkened skies of the planet without knowledge of the Dragon Balls would have people scratching their heads. But with knowledge of such things, one would know that the balls are being used.

The Namekian children who never got to see Porunga were in total amazement and even nervous at first, until the elders reassured the children that Porunga was family to them just like every other Namekian on the planet. This got the young Namekians to live in the moment and appreciate witnessing Porunga for the very first time in their life.

"Your second wish has been granted!" Porunga boomed. Chi-Chi had spoken her wish first, which surprised her because of the fact that she didn't really expect Kakarot to let her go through with her wish. Because of the fact that he was civil enough to allow her, she felt it would be respectful of her to at least allow him. And what really surprised her was the fact that he wished for something selfless more than anything else. Did he really have good in him?

"What is your last wish?" Porunga boomed.

Chi-Chi looked around to the others and cocked her head slightly. "I don't have anything else to wish for."

Everyone then looked over at Kakarot. The Saiyan definitely had something in mind. Oh, indeed, oh yes he did. He approached the Namekian translating everything and whispered into his ear. Of course the other Namekians still heard because of their enhanced hearing, but Chi-Chi wasn't able to make out what he said, despite her attempt at reading his lips.

The Namekian translates for Kakarot. And after he finishes, everyone awaits the answer.

Kakarot's tail is seen wagging side to side as he stands with his fists clenched. Whatever this wish was, he most definitely desired it and it showed. He was like a kid unable to contain himself.

"The wish is beyond my power," Porunga specified. "If there is anything else you want, let it be within my capabilities."

Kakarot's look of anticipation went to that of a frown. He then asked Porunga,"So you can't make me a Super Saiyan?"

Chi-Chi wondered what the hell a Super Saiyan was and even asked, though Kakarot ignored her. The Saiyan looked up to the wish-granting Dragon, who answered Kakarot's simple question. "No, I am not."

"You mean to tell me that you can-"

Kakarot then cut himself off. "Wait a minute!" He pointed his finger at the Dragon. "All my life, Turles has been telling me that the legend of the Super Saiyan is nothing but a myth! You telling me that you can't give me the power of a Super Saiyan must mean that it's true, right?"

"That is correct," Porunga answered.

Just then the Namekians all around began to mumble words to one another. None of them ever saw a Super Saiyan and some even questioned its credibility, but Porunga and the rest of the wish granting Dragons knew all there was to know about in the world, so the Super Saiyan myth was no simple myth.

"Alright, then! I know what the final wish is. I want knowledge as to how the last Super Saiyan that ever lived came to be."

Once the Namekian translated Kakarot's harmless wish, Porunga answered with all that he knew.

He didn't hold anything back, either. He told Kakarot about how there was long ago, once a Saiyan by the name of Yamoshi, who lived on Planet Sadala, original home of the Saiyans before its untimely destruction. He was one of the few righteous Saiyans amongst many, so when a war spread and he fought an evil, he was eventually backed into a corner. It was then that he became a Super Saiyan. Eventually he was worn out, outnumbered, and defeated. The last bit Porunga had to say was, "Now his spirit seeks out the next big obstacle."

Not only were wish granting objects real, but so was the legend of the Super Saiyan. Two things considered virtually impossible were true. Kakarot, being the first Saiyan to ever use the Dragon Balls, now hoped to be the first Saiyan to ascend into something greater than his current state.

After getting their wishes, Kakarot and Chi-Chi were guided directly right back to Saichoro, who wished to see if they managed to get exactly what it was that they desired. Chi-Chi was the most respectful of the two and said thank you a thousand times as she made an effort to shake Saichoro's giant hands. Knowing that it was a sign of trust back on Earth, the grand elder was happy to reciprocate by using his index finger to shake Chi-Chi's entire hand.

"Before you leave, I would like to do something for you."

After being asked what, Saichoro tells Chi-Chi that he wishes to unlock the hidden potential bubbling inside her. Chi-Chi was curious as to how he could possibly do that, so instead of saying anything, she approached him like she did earlier. Saichoro placed his hand on the top of her head.

Kakarot folded his arms and rolled his eyes. Was he really going to read her mind again? He scoffed.

But then a great surge of energy seems to consumes Chi-Chi's entire body. The bright, blue light illuminated the room great for a few seconds before vanishing with great haste. She looked at her hands, arms and legs. Nothing was different but everything sure as hell felt different.

The woman gave Saichoro a thousand more thank yous before she finally left the building.

Now it was just Kakarot, Saichoro, and Nail, who still didn't stop staring at the suspicious Saiyan.

"And as for me?" Kakarot asked.

Saichoro just smiled. "You know you could have asked me about the Super Saiyan instead of asking Porunga, yes?"

"Oh, really? Then what's the best way to become one?"

"While I do have my own hypothesis, I wouldn't dare want to steer you in the wrong direction. I do know of the man who knows everything in the world. He knows that I am speaking about him right now and right after this conversation, will likely be expecting you to tend to him very soon."

"What's his name?"

"Zuno," Saichoro answered Kakarot. "His name is Zuno."

"Where might I find him?"

"Now that...I can tell you without hesitation. Listen carefully now."

* * *

Chi-Chi was like a speeding bullet as she was making way to head back home. She was so drunk on the insane power boost she got that she wasn't even thinking logically anymore. As soon as Chi-Chi touched down to where she initially landed, she quickly came to the realization that her ship was destroyed and the only one available is Kakarot's, which she didn't even know the location of.

Knowing that he'd be coming to speak to her, Chi-Chi turned around to face the Saiyan that killed the Macareni gang. "What's wrong?" Kakarot chuckled. "Lost?"

She bit her lip hard - so hard that she was on the verge of bleeding. She couldn't believe she had to ask this question, but what other way would there be for her to head back home without a problem? The only way would to stay on Namek and let the Dragon Balls reactivate, but why not just catch a ride with Kakarot?

After all, she felt her power beginning to edge out his. And she wondered if he could feel it as well.

"As much as I hate to ask, will you take me back home?"

The fact that Chi-Chi asked Kakarot while he was having the best day of his life so far meant that he didn't even care if he had to travel with her. He wasn't aware of the fact that she was about to surpass him in power thanks to Saichoro, but once he did realize it, he wouldn't be able to do anything to the woman - at all.

"That won't be a problem."


	33. Another can of Worms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakarot and Chi-Chi have a discussion; Kuni convinces Prince Vegeta to go along with the current future of the Saiyan people; Paragus trains Zima

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 33**

**"Another can of Worms"**

* * *

Directly subsequent to their departure from Planet Namek, Kakarot and Chi-Chi were accompanying one another as they headed back to Earth. There was a silence between the both of them during the duration of their travel. Whenever Kakarot was in one room, Chi-Chi was in the one farthest away from him. If the Saiyan felt the need to enter one room that happened to be occupied, he merely waited until she was finished. Chi-Chi did very much the same, too. It was as if the two had respect for the other's space as they were headed to Earth.

Kakarot didn't mind initially just because taking Chi-Chi home was nothing more than a minor inconvenience for him as he was on the path to becoming a Super Saiyan - so he hoped.

As for Chi-Chi, she didn't know what to think at the moment. She was in the same cooped up areas as the man who had taken her father away from her at such a young age. She had so much pent up aggression and resentment for Kakarot due to what he did, but the fact that he didn't even go out of his way to not allowing her to grant her wish in bringing her father back to life just spoke volumes to her. Granted, she knew damn well Kakarot wasn't a good-hearted individual. He was a genocidal warrior, conquering entire planets and removing the indigenous people just to sell the empty planets to poor alien races for high profit - at least that was how it was explained. Yet despite being a homocidal maniac, Kakarot had a good side to him - she could tell.

Thinking like her master, Chi-Chi knew all too well that for a person with such strength being evil was nothing but a waste of potential. The thought of Kakarot actually being a good person and fighting to protect himself and those in need instead of harming others crossed her mind. Just how much of a service would he be doing for the Universe instead of a disservice? She couldn't help but wonder.

The main thing that had been getting on Kakarot's nerves was the fact that Chi-Chi's power was steadily growing at a constant rate ever since they both stepped foot back on his ship. Kakarot spent his time eating for the most part and thinking to himself as Chi-Chi spent her time either meditating, eating, using the bathroom, or sleeping. She meditated so much Kakarot had a hard time distinguishing whether she was sleeping or just clearing her head.

With his stomach virtually begging for sustenance, Kakarot got off his behind and headed to the storage room for food. By the time it occurred to him that Chi-Chi was in this room as well, he had already made entrance.

Chi-Chi jumped right up on her feet and got into a fighting position. Being a Martial Artist since just after she started to form entire coherent sentences stuck with Chi-Chi. Fighting was the only thing she had to hold on and it became apparent as she was always on guard. Seeing the fire in her eyes wasn't amusing to Kakarot even though when he saw the same fire in his past victims eyes, he would just mock them prior to taking their lives.

No, there was something different about this woman.

"Calm your nerves," Kakarot told her. "I don't intend to harm you."

"Right," Chi-Chi scoffed. "It's not like you haven't done enough damage already, huh?"

Chi-Chi was right and Kakarot knew this. How would he tell her the truth about Turles and how much of a puppet master he truly happened to be? Don't get him wrong, Kakarot didn't feel bad about killing Chi-Chi's father or her father's friends all those years ago, but he understood her pain of loss. She had managed to get what she wanted with her wish and he allowed her to do so.

Not knowing any way to deflect such a comment since it was like a million pound elephant in the room that just couldn't be ignored, Kakarot simply spilled out everything on the table. He told her about what he remembered of his life when he was just a little boy, explaining to her that he was always a little eccentric child seeking adventure and the thrill of battle. He managed to finally get it, but not in the way he had hoped. The man who took him in managed to manipulate, and mold him into the docile warrior that he would have more than likely used as a scapegoat in the future if there was an insane amount of heat on the both of them.

If anything, Kakarot was born to be a slave to his people, and if not that, then a slave to Turles. The way he saw it, he was going to be used one way or the other and he didn't want that. Killing Turles - though it was like killing a part of himself - was a chance for Kakarot to set his own path to greatness however he personally saw fit.

Kakarot told Chi-Chi, "It was because of my naivete and ignorance that Turles managed to plan the death of my mother. It's for that reason I went to Namek, to wish her back to life."

Chi-Chi was rather amazed by the fact that her and Kakarot came to Planet Namek for the very same goal: to wish back one of their dead parents back to life. Sure enough, they pretty much weren't anything alike - two different beings from two different worlds - but she'd be damned to say that they didn't have anything in common. Still, that didn't change what he did all those years ago up until now.

"Just because you were hurt doesn't give you the incentive to continue hurting others. Do you realize how many lives you've ruined? How many hearts you've broken? Tortured souls? Does that even eat at you?"

"No, it doesn't eat at me," Kakarot answered honestly, "and I apologize that I don't have any empathy for the lives that I've taken. As a child growing up, the only way I knew how to get what I want was through hurting, killing, and taking by sheer force. I followed my guardian's ideology, but he's dead now and I'm liberated." He then subtly smiled - not a menacing one - but one that revealed a bit of innocence. "I am a free man now and it is on me to choose whether or not I wish to continue plundering worlds for my own pleasure, abetting to the cause of someone who doesn't even care for me now. On Planet Namek, instead of taking by force, I decided to be cordial - friendly. And look how it all turned out: nobody got hurt and we both got what we want. Granted, I would have loved a good fight, but what's the point? With you and that Namekian that kept staring at me from across the room, I would have been defeated."

Kakarot's last sentence got a snicker out of Chi-Chi. "So you noticed that, too, huh?"

"Yeah." Kakarot went into the storage box and got him a big bag of meat in the shape of an oval. The young Saiyan ripped the bag open and placed the meat in the other palm of his hand. By generating just a bit of energy, he cooked it and swallowed the entire thing as if it was a small, boneless chicken leg.

With the silence that ensued, Chi-Chi began to wander in her own mind again. Thinking on all the words that Kakarot had just said to her. If he was a free man now, she couldn't help but ask, "What is that you want out of life, then?"

"I don't know. All I know is battle. Where I'm from, people eat, sleep, and breed to fight. Children who are too weak for battle are looked as commoners and sent off as children to conquer a world. If they complete their mission, fine. If they die, too bad. Most die and those who aren't fit for battle just work at home to further the cause of battle for the warriors that do go out to fight. The first person to die by my hands had been killed when I was just around three or four years old."

"What child were you?" Chi-Chi asked, insanely curious. It was as if all the pent up hate she had against him was cast to the side just because she found his life very interesting. It wasn't everyday that a person got to understand a totally different culture from a planet light years away of her own. She was sure Bulma and other scientists would get a great kick out of this story.

"I was a child meant to stay home and grow up as an engineer worker."

"Really!?" Chi-Chi asked. By the sheer power he has always been capable of displaying, she couldn't find it truthful that Kakarot of all people would be listed as some lower-class Saiyan. If a person of low caliber such as him happened to be this strong, she couldn't help but wonder of the power of the Saiyans considered to be great, natural warriors.

"That's right. I'm a born commoner who's molded his way past set expectations, way stronger than the average, but there are still Saiyans stronger than I as we speak. All I've ever wanted to do was explore the world with my fists and prove to my big brother that I wasn't weak. My mother told me to not worry about it and work while my father was always away. My eagerness to become something that my society didn't expect of me was what inevitably got my mother killed."

Chi-Chi had just barely noticed an extremely faint frown come over Kakarot's face. There was no doubt about it - he felt rather guilty for his mother's death.

Kakarot vividly recalled the rage he felt build up inside when he learned of his mother's death. He took it out on an entire civilization and all those that he came across hadn't been spared, despite their pleas for mercy.

"Now that that's all out of the way, what's your goal now?" Chi-Chi prodded.

"I don't know what my goal in life is, but the current goal I am fixated on is becoming a Super Saiyan; to rise from a lower-class nobody into the legend that is looked at as the very pinnacle of a Saiyan's strength."

"But what comes after?"

Seeing a glimmer of humanity in Kakarot made Chi-Chi feel that Kakarot had a chance of becoming something better than he's always been. Kakarot paused for a while prior to responding. He seemed to take deep thought into it before replying, "I haven't got a clue."

The goodness inside Chi-Chi, which was taught from Roshi, Kami, and all those alike started to take over. She felt that maybe, just maybe, she could help.

* * *

As much as he tried to tolerate the cold on Planet Koori, even Prince Vegeta resorted to wearing a very heavy coated animal pelt, covering his entire body save for his neck. He walked around the entirety of the mining operation in which his subjects worked constantly day and night. Despite the fact everyone figured out ways to adjust themselves to the climate and proper living conditions here, he just hoped everyone didn't get too comfortable. As soon as they were finished, they would be leaving.

Once she got his attention subsequent to approaching him, Nion informed Vegeta that Kuni wishes to see him. The walk there was like any other walk with his subjects: mostly silence. But as they walked side by side, Vegeta mumbled, "I know," just loud enough for Nion to hear.

Knowing better to play dumb with the Saiyan Prince, Nion just grinned. "And I know as well."

And what she knew wasn't the same thing Vegeta was referring to. He knew that much and it made him wonder what in the hell she could be talking about?

Once it dawned on him what it most likely was, Vegeta's cheek got a little red before he bit the bait. "And what is it that you know exactly?"

"I know you and Kuni have been having a venereal relationship with another for some time now."

Vegeta just scoffed. He figured as much. "Were you told?"

"It's hard to ignore the noises of carnal pleasure whenever I come in for a mandated report," Nion told him. Seeing he went silent, Nion continued speaking. "You do realize having an active relationship such as the one you and my daughter are having happens to have consequences, no?"

Vegeta, quite slow to understand, responded by saying, "I don't follow."

Once the two stop right by the residence of Kuni, Nion told Vegeta, "Go in and find out."

Leaving Nion behind, Vegeta decided to do as told and enter the igloo. By the time he got to the front entrance, the smells of meaty juicy foods ran right into his nose, getting his own appetite all worked up. He then saw Kuni eating a shit ton of food with empty bottles and plates all over the table she dined on.

Growing up with Kuni, whenever she ate, she did so with proper etiquette. Never once before had he witnessed her dine out like a pig until this very moment. It was a bit of a surprise, but he rolled with the punches, changed his shocked expression to that of an uncaring one, and approached her.

Seeing Vegeta in her room, she put her eating to a halt and got up with and grabbed Vegeta by the shoulders hysterically. "Oh, I have exciting news for you!" She went on telling him how it's the best thing ever and how it couldn't have been more perfect timing for him and so much more. She kept on running on and on about it, yet Vegeta was still at a total loss as to where she was getting at.

The Saiyan prince got tired of her constant babbling and casually sat her back down prior to crossing his arms to take posture of authority. "Stop beating around the bush. Tell me what is it that happens to be good."

"I'm carrying Vegeta the fifth."

Vegeta's heart skipped a beat.

He wasn't sure if he heard her correctly so all Vegeta could so was say, "What!?" Nion began to explain it to him as she approached him from behind, but Vegeta pressed his finger against her lips to shut the woman up. "I'm carrying Vegeta the fifth." continued to ring in his head over and over again like a broken record. He even made it appear as if he had piss poor understanding as he thought about it for quite a while. He never got to meet his great grandfather, didn't know anything of his grandfather. His father is the third, while he and Tarble are the fourth generation. The only way that there'd be Vegeta the fifth is if…

"You're bearing my child?"

Kuni couldn't tell whether the shock on Vegeta's face was that of a positive reaction or a negative one. "Don't tell me you want me to get an abortion?"

"What the hell is an abortion!?"

Kuni just shook her head and decided to not bother in explaining to Vegeta what an abortion really was. She instead switched gears and got to business. "No sooner than when your coronation takes place, your heir will be born! That's great news." Vegeta just turned around and began rubbing his head. Kuni's tone of voice changed to one of great uncertainty. "That is what you want, isn't it?"

"Having a child between you and I be an heir to the throne would be ripping my legacy as a pure-blooded Saiyan. The reputation of being the only King to dare have tainted offspring is far too much to deal with."

Kuni rubbed on Vegeta's upper-back to his shoulders and began to caress his warm cheek. She drew her face close to the corner of his ear, which calmed him enough to let his tail unwrap itself from around his waist. Kuni spoke in a soothing, reassuring tone. "You shouldn't fret all that much, future King of Planet Vegeta. You're full-blooded and I am half. That will make our son ¾ of a Saiyan - 75% - 25 percent more than half, which means his Saiyan tendencies will be emphasized."

"Yet the child still won't be of pure breed…" Vegeta mumbled.

Having a quick solution for that as well, Kuni just squealed teasingly with a subtle pinch of enticing laughter. "You forget my mother's specialty as a clone? If there's one thing we are good at, it's genetic engineering. We're capable of enhancing all Saiyan characteristics in the child while we still have an open window to do so. We just never experimented with your people because King Vegeta would literally kill our entire base of operations."

Vegeta sighed. To pretty much make himself the black sheep of the royal family by mating with a non-pure blooded Saiyan was a disappointment, but he couldn't imagine himself with some Saiyan commoner, either. If there's one thing Kuni did better than any other Saiyan associate was challenge him - not physically but verbally and mentally. She had always done this ever since they were children. That's why whenever Kuni kept him company, he couldn't really complain much. And it was just a bonus that she happened to be insanely strong, too.

There wasn't a single doubt about one thing, though: their offspring would be the most powerful Saiyan that the Universe has ever laid eyes on in years.

To him, strength was more important than his child being only 75% Saiyan blood. After all, his strength would inevitably come from its Saiyan ancestors.

"Fine," Vegeta acquiesced. "Let's give it a shot."

After all, if none of this worked out, he could just pick any female of his choosing back home. There wouldn't be any major consequences to this at all. The risk was minimal and the reward was beyond his wildest imagination. Being a Saiyan with an open mind was rare, though Vegeta the fourth had always been one of a kind. His father always told him such.

* * *

A Saiyan's training was never easy. Simple? Sure. Easy? Nah.

Paragus continued this tradition as he showed Zima the ropes, giving the kid knowledge as a former colonel on Planet Vegeta. Broly was told to stand on the sideline and watch Paragus and the youngster go at it. This was the first time Broly ever actually saw someone fight other than his father when he used to train with him as a youngster, but now he was seeing a different side of things - people's movements and their styles of fighting. While Broly may seem slow to the average person, his brain soaked all combat movements like a sponge. To spectate, was, in another way, to train.

Paragus was aging and felt that he would be slowing down a lot more at any moment, but he knew that he would outlast the kid solely based off his experience. He knew for a fact Zima grew stronger because of recovering from his injuries. Paragus just wondered how much powerful the kid managed to get. That was what made him excited to train the brat. Deep down, he wanted a challenge.

"Just to let you know, it's an honor to face off against one of the greatest warriors of Planet Vegeta." Zima heard of stories of Paragus and his near unrivaled intellect when it came to strategy in conquering worlds. Only the King himself was better than Paragus, but then again, it was probably because their genius ran in the family.

"I love the attitude." He then beckoned the boy to come forth. "Now let's see if you really are one of the most talented of your generation."

Zima was quick to fire off for Paragus. The old veteran had his left arm outstretched way back and behind him as his right arm was stretched out, slightly upward. He caught Zima's oncoming fist and came at him with his left hand. He held back just enough so Zima could duck under the attack.

Paragus suppressed his power on purpose so that he could study the kid's movements as they fought. He hopped back and fired a ki attack at point blank range, which Zima just cancelled out with one of his own. Paragus shot off into the sky and began rendering a barrage of energy blasts simultaneously. Zima was quick to dodge them all.

But once he realized that Paragus wasn't trying to hit him directly, Zima stopped. It was then and there that he had been met with a brutal elbow to the upper back that sent him sliding through the smokescreen that Paragus made just mere moments earlier.

As soon as Zima got up, Paragus came forth with a brutal punch across the face. Zima remained on his feet, but received a hardened knee to the gut and a devastating blow to the chin prior to being knocked down with a 360 spinning kick to the kidney.

Zima spat blood as he struggled to get back up on his feet. Despite the obvious pain he felt from those attacks, Paragus caught note of the smile plastered all over the boy's face. "First lesson already finished and I haven't got a chance to correct you yet," Paragus joked.

"First lesson?" Zima wiped the blood from his mouth. "What's that?"

"Learn to take pain."

Paragus zoomed in for the child yet again, grabbed him by the head, and rammed the tip of his knee into the boy's face prior to letting go and connecting the tip of his boot with the boy's chin. He then maneuvered around him, drove his elbow into the kid's spine, grabbed him by his hair and chucked him right into the ground.

"Still smiling?" Paragus chuckled.

While watching, Broly couldn't help but feel sad for Zima. But should he really? Despite the fact that Paragus was showing absolutely no mercy, seeing Zima take extreme pleasure in it showed that he loved every second of their training.

Broly wasn't able to relate to the feeling at all. Still, he couldn't help but wonder.

Would Zima feel the same way once they began sparring together?

He didn't want to accidentally murder the kid when the time came, but maybe that was what Paragus had been preparing the young warrior for.

He'd just have to wait and see.


	34. A New Leaf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chi-Chi comes back home; Gyumao gets into an altercation with Kakarot; Kakarot reassures Chi-Chi of a promise.

**Dragon Ball: Governed**

**Chapter 34**

**"A New Leaf"**

* * *

Having Gyumao back was initially a great shock to Muten Roshi. It took the old master a while to get used to having his old pupil back. He had already grieved for him and moved on, so to have Gyumao back, alive and well again, was sort of like freshening closed wounds that had a chance of being re-opened. Nonetheless, he was genuinely happy to see him, and he could see that Tien and all the others took great interest in the friendly giant.

On Omori's island, everyone sat on the floor except for Roshi, who stood on his two feet as Gyumao sat on the couch by himself due to the fact that his size wouldn't let anyone squeeze in alongside them unless they wanted to die of aspyhxiation. Everyone listened intently to the giant of a man and it would appear to them that Gyumao was quite the natural storyteller. Every word people hang onto as if their last two fingers were clutched onto the edge of a mountain.

Gyumao was telling them times of how Roshi always tried to mack on the females back then when he and Gohan were under his wing. "And the lady, thinking Gohan was beating on an old man, jumped in when nobody else intervened." He raised his index finger. "And that was just phase one."

Roshi was having a rather hard time hiding his devious grin. He remembered orchestrating plans to get women's attention all the time, and he often used Gohan and Gyumao to help him. The latter of the two didn't catch on until much later although Gohan knew exactly what his master was up to as he even sometimes tried to get in on the fun, though much to his master's distaste. One would think Roshi tried to keep all the women to himself to teach Gohan discipline in all areas of life, but in all reality, the turtle hermit was just selfish when it came to pichi-pichi gals.

"Phase two was getting the lady to offer Muten Roshi a ride to the hospital. I stay behind as Gohan accompany the both of them to there." Gyumao paused briefly as he was just about to add the climax. He could see it in Roshi's face that he knew what was coming next out of his mouth. "They never made it around the block before Roshi and Gohan were kicked out."

Everyone busted out laughing.

That was pretty much what they expected.

But lord, was it hilarious. They had pictured everything; from the three talking about how they were going to this all up until they walked in the store right after one another, acting as if they barely knew each other, all too make the scene convincing enough to.

Gyumao got great joy of being able to get laughs from people, but it was short lived for him. The feeling of two big powers nearing was what had caught his attention. He can tell by the look on Roshi's face that one of them had to be Chi-Chi, given that he was so serious. And worst of all, it was likely that she was accompanied by that monster.

Yet most shocking to Roshi and the others; Chi-Chi's power had surpassed that of the man who had killed he father long ago. This had all of them wondering why in the hell she didn't beat him to a bloody pulp yet.

"Incredible!" Krillin shouted. "You've been training on King Kai's world for years and your daughter just comes back out of nowhere stronger than you are!"

Tien knew for a fact that this was very much out of the ordinary. Something bigger than them must have transpired while they were away and he knew for a fact that he wanted to find out. All Tien could say was, "There must be an explanation for it."

"No matter the explanation, there's no reason that she should be around such a person," Gyumao growled.

All was fine and peachy when he came back. Sure enough he missed his baby girl, but the memories prior to his death came flooding back to him all at once. The pain, rage, sorrow, hate - all of it. Gyumao was so tense in the house that the furniture started to shake.

* * *

After nearly two weeks of intergalactic travel, the Saiyan and Earthling were both finally just about to touchdown on Planet Earth. In the back of Chi-Chi's mind, she couldn't help but find it crazy that this guy, Kakarot, of all people was actually willing to bring her back home in his ship. He didn't have to do that. He could have eliminated her, a threat to him, and continued on his merry way.

Yet he didn't.

So taking that into account as well as his actions on Namek, Chi-Chi couldn't help but question herself one thing: was he truly rotten to the core with no chance of redemption?

Or was he just a man trying to not be the same broken kid just now trying to manage life on his own?

Once the ship touched down on Earth's soil, Kakarot approached Chi-Chi from behind and told her, "Home sweet home."

Tears started to swell in the woman's eyes. Knowing exactly what was awaiting her when she got back home made the young woman get all emotional. The last time she ever saw her father, she was just a little girl. Now? She was on the verge of womanhood.

Kakarot saw the water works streaming its way down her nice, soft cheeks. "Many times I've missed home, yet not once had I ever cried over it." He didn't understand why she felt so strongly, though he did get why she missed her world.

Sniffing, Chi-Chi responded, "You wouldn't understand."

Kakarot just shrugged his shoulders and silently agreed. Having finally managed to bring her back home, the only thing he could think of was heading over to Zuno so he could get some answers of his own.

Despite the horrendous atrocities Kakarot had committed throughout his lifetime and regardless of the fact that Kakarot is a big reason to blame for Chi-Chi's life pretty much becoming a living hell, the time they had travelling together forced them to set aside some differences. After all, Kakarot, the very same person who killed her father as a child, had let her revive her father without any push back.

He had more than once chance to stab her in the back and keep another wish for himself, but no, he didn't. Was it because he related to her for wanting to wish his own mother back to life? Was it because he felt genuine remorse? Was he trying to say sorry?

She had been wanting to ask Kakarot these things the entire time, but wasn't able to step up and actually have that talk with him. Such was rather uncharacteristic of Chi-Chi because she never hesitated to speaking her mind as soon as it came to her; whether it was toward Roshi, Kami, Karin, her friends, it didn't matter a single bit. But now? She just couldn't find the heart to ask. Kakarot wasn't a human like her. He was an extraterrestrial, born to a alien race of warriors that live to battle and battle to live.

Truth be told, she wasn't sure how he'd react when asked.

But if there was one thing Chi-Chi knew for sure; Kakarot had a good side to him.

Once out of the ship, Chi-Chi walked a few feet ahead before stopping and turning around. "I know you're a big bad and all, but be careful out there, Kakarot," Chi-Chi told him. "And I hope you can uphold your promise whenever you've finished your journey."

Kakarot gave the woman a subtle grin that non-verbally shouted to Chi-Chi that he accepted this as a challenge. "Unlike one man I know, I'll try to be one of my word."

Just as he turned around, Chi-Chi felt a great push of wind come past her so hard that small pieces of her hair came directly off her scalp. And as a result of this overwhelming surge of velocity coming directly to Kakarot, the Saiyan was kicked right into his ship, which had been tipped over on its side with its legs sticking out in the air.

Kakarot rolled off the pointy spot of his star ship and came back down on one knee, with a bloody mouth and a gashed lip. Looking up, he noticed six familiar faces and once he looked at the unfamiliar one, he realized which person had attacked him. And seeing how he never met this person a single time before in his life, Kakarot could only come to one conclusion.

"Ah, you must be Chi-Ch-"

But he was cut off with a mighty blow to the right jaw; the punch being so hard that Kakarot went skipping on the green lands like a rock being skipped on water.

"Dad, what are you doing!?" Chi-Chi shouted.

Seeing all of her friends come down with solemn looks on their faces told Chi-Chi everything that she needed to know. Her father was going to kill Kakarot.

And she wouldn't be able to stop him.

Kakarot blitzed into the heavens of Planet Earth at such supersonic speeds that a solid boom rendered a force so powerful that his ship went flying away while the clouds were split in half.

Gyumao got a solid idea of where Kakarot would be within the next few seconds and fired a large chi attack high up in the sky with such immaculate trajectory that Kakarot had to come to a complete halt before being hit by it. This allowed an opening for Gyumao, who smashed his foot into the Saiyan's stomach.

The cracks of his armor was heard far down below even by the witnesses. With the wind pushing up against his back as he was redirected down for the ground yet again, Kakarot struggled to keep his eyes opened as he fought the pain. Just as he tried to regain control over himself while in the midst of an aerial battle, Gyumao came around and elbowed him in the upper back.

Gyumao proceeded to grab Kakarot by the back of the head and come crashing Kakarot into the planet face first as hard as he could, causing wide open cracks in the ground, some of which that began to cave in.

Gyumao rubbed Kakarot's face right in the ground as if he were a dog owner shoving his pet's face in its own waste. He pulled Kakarot up from behind and whispered in the Saiyan's ear, "Many people face injustice in life. This results in families being broken and unable to recover. I won't let you become more of a cancer than you already are."

He chucked Kakarot into the sky prior to stretching his arms out and pulling them back in a cup like manner. A bright, blue beam of light started to form between his hands, which began to separate more and more the bigger the blast got.

"He's going in for the kill," Roshi told them.

"KAME….HAME….HA!"

Kakarot's face changed from that to a look of pain to that of pure business. With his expressionless mein and a slight grunt, he regained control over his flight, stopped, and watched the attack come his way.

"You Earthlings...you've taught me alot." Kakarot then stood in a boxing position - his chin tucked down to his chest and both of his fists protecting his face. "Especially all there is to know about ki!"

The fact that Kakarot could increase the output of his power by concentrating his energy into one focal point in the form of ki blasts meant he could do it with his body as well. By concentrating his forces into one single fist, the force of impact from his punch had more than tripled.

Doing something assumed absolutely impossible, Kakarot punched Gyumao's blast. It was initially met with some struggle before it was deflected right back to the big man. Gyumao was caught off guard, but couldn't help but block the attack by putting his fists up. He truly didn't expect Kakarot to do that.

Kakarot flew behind Gyumao faster than the Kamehameha could get to him and charged an attack of his own. The 16 year-old Saiyan clapped his hands together and tensed his muscles. Slowly, he pulled out a small ring the color of burning steel wool with electrical shocks jumping all around the place.

"This should keep you still!" Kakarot rose the attack above his head. "Siddown!"

Acting quickly, Gyumao shifted his body so he could block both attacks. With his own Kamehameha pushing against his right hand, Kakarot's shocking attack was brushing up onto his forearm. The more he endured Kakarot's attack, the more numb his body was beginning to feel. This of course, was lowering his defenses to the attack he intended for Kakarot.

Seeing no other way, Gyumao shouted at the top of his lungs, **"Kaio-Ken!"**

With a burst of red light surrounding his body, Gyumao managed to find the strength to cancel out two attacks simultaneously by emitting a great charge of ki. He rushed through the smokescreen, rammed Kakarot in the stomach yet again and pursued a vicious combo that didn't spare a single part of the Saiyan's body.

Everyone else stood in absolute awe, watching Gyumao move with such speed and efficiency. Roshi didn't have any words. As Gyumao's former teacher, he noticed that he and Gohan had their own way of fighting despite being taught the same old turtle style.

Son Gohan was very technical in battle; when he was fighting, he always studied his opponent and looked for any possible weakness or opening, always preserving his energy in a fight and only letting a surplus out at a crucial moment.

On the other hand, Gyumao was more about raw power. He used his strength and often relied on holding back his speed and making it seem like a weakness before catching his opponent off-guard in crucial moments.

Yet here and now?

Gyumao was moving with all sorts of flexibility, control, and just pure utter tenacity.

His training on King Kai's world must have been something of an entirely new experience for him.

Gyumao ducked and elbowed Kakarot in the pelvis and rendered him a brutal uppercut to the chin that put the Saiyan on his back.

Kakarot's bare chest was revealed, as was his stomach. There appeared nothing but gashes, bruised ribs, and wide open cuts. His eye was swollen as was his lip and he could barely breathe through his puffed up nose. Never before had he received a beating this bad to such degree. If not for his great will, he wouldn't have been able to get right back up on his two feet.

Always, Kakarot was with the knowledge that a Saiyan will only come stronger through hard battles and near death experiences. Knowing this as a child, he always used it to his advantage to grow stronger every chance he got. So whenever the Saiyan would get his ass handed to him, he'd only push himself right back up with a smile on his face, one so wide that it'd make his own opponents question whether or not he was a sadist AND masochist. But with senzus, he had infinite potential. Reaching right into his boots, Kakarot grabbed a bean. Gyumao knew what he was doing and rushed in for him immediately.

Kakarot tossed the bean in the sky and rocketed it off. He knew exactly what Gyumao was going to do; stop him by any means, which meant grabbing his ankles if he had to. Kakarot knew just how high he had to toss it. By the time he was grabbed, the senzu bean came from his hand to his mouth.

Seeing this, Gyumao's guard was lowered.

Kakarot kicked Gyumao across the face and touched back down on his feet when let go. He stood there, looking on at Gyumao, chewing the senzu bean. In just a matter of seconds, Kakarot's swollen eye was gone as were all his bruises, scratches, and wounds. His smile grew even wider as his body tingled with this great sensation of energy that was just dying to be unleashed.

Kakarot let out so much power that Roshi, Chi-Chi, and everyone else not fighting fell down on their behinds.

Gyumao felt the pressure of power coming from Kakarot and was in disbelief at the outrageous jump in strength. Kakarot, surrounded by a bright purple light, was chuckling like a mad man. Never before had he went through such a stimulating rush. He had Chi-Chi's father to thank for that. It was at this point that he truly didn't regret allowing the woman to wish him back to life. Now having a new life in the midst of battle, Kakarot rushed in for Gyumao, made force with his forearm by using his own, and tried for a direct punch.

Gyumao ducked, came for a quick jab, though was parried away before meeting a nice knuckle sandwich to the cheek of his face. He pushed Kakarot's fist away with his head and rendered a blow right in the nose.

Kakarot came back down stumbling on his feet as he held his bleeding nostrils.

Gyumao yelled, "Kaio-Ken times five!" and rushed in for Kakarot again.

This combo wasn't nearly as nice as the last one he rendered Kakarot but it was just as brutal. By the time he was done beating on Kakarot senseless, the Saiyan was lying down in a bunch of rubble, with only in his undergarments as his boots and all other pieces of armor were disintegrated in the process.

"Daddy, stop it!" Chi-Chi begged.

Hearing these words come from Chi-Chi's mouth had everyone poke their head out so much that their necks were lucky to not break. It even caught Gyumao's attention, who was on the verge of finishing Kakarot off for good.

The Saiyan wasn't even able to get up at this point. Kakarot simply lied there with a body that just couldn't stop twitching. All he needed was one more little punch, kick, or chi attack and it was all she wrote. He couldn't speak, his hearing was impaired, and his vision deceived him.

"Might as well be dead," he thought to himself.

"What do you mean stop!?" Gyumao shouted back at her. "Are you forgetting who this man is!? Have you gone mad!?"

Never before had Chi-Chi seen her father this angry and it upset her greatly. She couldn't help but cry because she hated arguing with her dad but this was necessary. "Kakarot isn't here to hurt anyone! He even let me wish you back to life when he could have just killed me and took it for himself! He isn't as bad as you think he is, daddy. Give him a chance."

And yet, here were Kami's teachings coming out of Chi-Chi's mouth, the same person who was the most stubborn student of the God of Earth. "He has good in him, daddy! Just let him live...please!"

Gyumao, not knowing what to do, felt extremely conflicted. He wanted to so badly kill Kakarot for all the wrong he's done, but at the same time, the face his daughter makes when she's like this just shatters his heart to bits. Not knowing what to do, Gyumao just shot off and flew away in a fit of rage. His yells of frustration echoed despite the fact that he was gone for hundreds of miles in just a few seconds.

It was then that Chi-Chi ran over to Kakarot, who was pretty much a vegetable. Everyone else watching got a little closer as Chi-Chi healed Kakarot by giving him a senzu bean. The Saiyan was so submerged in euphoria and bliss upon getting recovered, that he didn't notice Chi-Chi shaking and poking him.

It wasn't until she yelled his name that the Saiyan was warped back to reality.

Chi-Chi backed away to give Kakarot room to get up. When he was on his two feet, the Saiyan began dusting himself off as if nothing had happened. His lean, yet toned body was put on display for all to see. Kakarot sure enough not only fought like a warrior, but sure had a body that was built for one as well.

"That sure was a good battle," Kakarot commented.

"All that and you act like nothin' even happened," Roshi added.

Roshi and Chi-Chi were the only ones that stood within 10 yards of Kakarot. Everyone else stayed away from the Saiyan and just looked at him with hard stares.

"Because nothing did happen," Kakarot told Roshi. "I was just about to head out."

Chi-Chi didn't even know what to say at first. Kakarot was on the verge of death and yet he wasn't making a big deal out of it. She could feel another great surge of power just bubbling inside Kakarot and yet he had the control and discipline to hold it in. Not even just that, but he didn't feel the need to get back at her father. Maybe he knew when to retreat, or maybe he was really trying to uphold to a part of their deal. Even still, she had to be sure. "You can't go nowhere without making sure you keep your promise, Kakarot."

"For the thousandth time, I will," Kakarot chuckled.

"Wait, what promise?" Krillin asked as he got closer. "What sorts of deals are you making with the devil that we don't know about, huh?"

"It's nothing bad," Kakarot assured the midget.

Before he could explain everything, Chi-Chi did so herself. She broke down how she personally saw Kakarot: a man who has potential to change a new leaf. All his life he was raised by a charismatic psychopath and took the inner pain of losing his mother out on everyone else because it made him feel better, especially if you keep in the fact he always felt guilty for it.

She told them how Kakarot killed this same man after learning how he orchestrated everything. Kakarot is away from that life now and wishes to make his own. The thing is, he really doesn't know what he wants to do with himself after he gets the answers he's looking for. And this is where Chi-Chi came in.

At the end, Chi-Chi ended it with, "And I would love to help him find his way."

This left everyone speechless. To even consider bringing this man in despite all he's done was crazy. Personally, Roshi did always believe that people deserved a second chance, however there were just some people that had caused too much pain and suffering to even being considered getting another shot.

One thing caught Roshi's attention, though. Earlier, he realized Kakarot could have killed Gyumao if he truly wished so with the knowledge that he's able to transform into a giant ape by forming his own artificial moon.

Yet he didn't.

That told Roshi a lot. That in itself made Roshi question if Kakarot really was trying to take a new path in life. It was just too bad the others couldn't see it.

"But in the meantime," Kakarot started, "I'm going to go out and chase my current dream."

Out in the distance, Gyumao was hearing everything. While he made it seem like he had left, he turned back around and kept himself down-low. While he initially felt disappointed in his daughter, he couldn't feel more proud for her just knowing that she held so much character.

Chi-Chi was no longer a little girl like the last time he had seen her. She was a grown woman who could make her own decisions and it showed on the very first day he got to see her again in nearly 14 years.

He'd just have to get used to that from here on out.


End file.
